Repositório institucional da universidade estadual da Paraíba: avaliação de usabilidade pela perspectiva das heurísticas de Nielsen

Abstract

This work aimed to analyze the usability of the Institutional Repository of the State University of Paraíba, from the perspective of Nielsen's heuristics, in order to detect possible concerns and usability difficulties faced by users of the repository. A study case was used as a research tool, from a qualitative and quantitative approach, using data collection techniques such as the electronic survey and cooperative evaluation. This study case addresses aspects of the scientific information access, of the Open Access movement in the Information Society, as well as the democratization of information that was made possible by the globalization of the internet. As a matter of a fact, this situation - which is still far from ideal – has been glimpsed in this research to identify what expectations users of a university library have regarding the dissemination of information. This research presents concepts of digital Libraries and digital Repositories, highlighting the Institutional Repository as a current source of academic-scientific information. Also, the work brings historical and practical aspects about usability, human-computer interaction, characterizing, and presenting each one of Nielsen's Heuristics. Therefore, it was not only noticed and listed possible some interface and usability problems in the Institutional Repository of the State University of Paraíba; but also, recommendations so that the users can solve themselves these issues, providing to the user a more satisfactory experience.