Beyond the Usability Lab

6.2.1. Rating scales

Rating scales can be used at various points in an online study: at the beginning, before or after each task, and at the end. These can take on many forms, with some addressing specific features of the Web site or task (e.g., navigation, search, site map) and others addressing specific reactions to the Web site (e.g., visual appeal, page load times, likelihood to return to the site). For any of these ratings, some type of Likert scale or other scales with anchors at the two ends are most commonly used. Most of these scales generally have at least 5 points and sometimes up to 9 or 10.

Analyzing these kinds of ratings is quite simple. One of the reasons that we usually present them with labels at the two ends of the scale ...