[IxDA Discuss] U-testing paper prototype Forms

[Jeff Howard]

It would skew some metrics like completion time, since most people type at
a different pace than they write. But paper prototypes are more about
testing whether the participants conceptually understand the task. Are the
labels confusing, do the options make sense? What is this page about?

In terms of design, paper forms have a whole host of usability problems
that don't have direct parallals to online forms. Many print forms have
columns and rows that makes it easier to miss a question, especially if
it's on the back. That's why paper forms are often numbered. On paper,
people can write in spaces that aren't text boxes. Or write illegibly.
They're also harder to correct if they make a mistake.

My point is, printing out an online form to paper isn't going to result in
something that is optimal for filling out by hand. The act of writing _is_
going to skew the results, but as long as you're focusing on conceptual
understanding and not ergonomics it should be fine.

// jeff


Damon van Vessem wrote:
> Does anyone have experience / research findings of how this would
compare to
> people filling out the same form online (HTML)? Does the act of writing on
> paper skew the results?