From 7d105bd57a6f14d90403ce0fc2fbb2fc58213d87 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Lorna Howes Date: Fri, 24 Jul 2026 16:25:42 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] Create 2026-06-24-multiple-branches-usability-testing-findings-june-2026.md --- ...es-usability-testing-findings-june-2026.md | 87 +++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 87 insertions(+) create mode 100644 research/2026-06-24-multiple-branches-usability-testing-findings-june-2026.md diff --git a/research/2026-06-24-multiple-branches-usability-testing-findings-june-2026.md b/research/2026-06-24-multiple-branches-usability-testing-findings-june-2026.md new file mode 100644 index 000000000..385963fb0 --- /dev/null +++ b/research/2026-06-24-multiple-branches-usability-testing-findings-june-2026.md @@ -0,0 +1,87 @@ +# Multiple branches usability testing June 2026 + +## 2060-06-16 / Sprint 5 (Q1) + +## Aims +- To understand how usable the design is. +- To find out whether a longer or more complex form might present additional challenges. +- To uncover any challenges the design might present for users who have cognitive or neurodivergent conditions. + +Can people easily: +- Add routes +- Edit routes +- Reorder questions and understand the impact +- Fix routes that have issues +- Understand what routing is in place in a form +- Navigate, use and understand a long routes page + +## Participants +- 8 civil servants +- Current users of GOV.UK Forms +- Intention: A range of experience of the platform and using routing +- Actual: More beginners than experienced users + +- 4 **had** a declared a cognitive or neurodivergent condition +- 4 had **not** declared a cognitive or neurodivergent condition + +## Methodology +- Usability tests with form creators. +- 60 minute sessions. + +## Key Headlines + +### Adding the questions + +People work from a range of formats when creating their forms +Half of people set up the question wrongly. Most commonly, they set up the list question to accept one or more options. + +### Finding where to add routes + +More than half of participants struggled to find where or how to add routes, for these reasons: +- They couldn’t find the ‘Edit question routes’ button +- They didn't the empty routes page shown when they needed to add more questions +- They didn't understand why their options were not shown on the routes page because they set the question up to accept more than one option + +When searching for how to add routes, people often went to the Edit question link. +They would usually focus on the options area of the edit question page, or go into editing the options. + +### Adding routes + +Once on the Edit routes page, if the questions were set up correctly, they understood how it worked.They generally used the dropdowns to change the options quite easily. + +However, people commented on the amount of stuff on the page making it more difficult, especially text and numbers. + +### The length of the form + +Most people did not seem to find the longer form more difficult to use. + +### Reordering questions and editing / fixing routes + +Those who did the task understood what they needed to do when they saw the error for the backwards route. + +Again, the amount of numbers and text on the page made the task more difficult. + +### Understand what routing is in place in a form + +Those who used the route descriptions seemed able to understand them with a bit of focus. +There seemed to be potentially a challenge when how the route is written in the original form is structured differently to the platform. +There seemed to be potentially a challenge when how the route is written in the original form is structured differently to the platform. + +### Using the keyboard to navigate (one participant) + +They were the only person who seemed very nervous about making mistakes. +They were keen to be able to edit the routes for just one question at a time. +Their main limitation is scrolling the page while also using the keyboard to interact with the page. + +### Impact for people with neurodivergent condtions + +Due to the interaction of other characteristics (experience level and job role), it was challenging to identify the causes of the behaviour of people with conditions. + +In some aspects, people with conditions had a better experience and in some areas it was worse, but this was also associated with their experience level, and whether or not they were a content designer. + +People with conditions were almost exclusively the people talking about the amount and presentation of the information on the ‘Edit question routes’. + +## Supporting Evidence +- [Report](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/17oKU8GmFwv581oZGF-01JmcLt_LdqmLIV8RQvS7ba3c/edit?usp=drive_link) +- [Playback](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1I7C3MKqUhObp0V_t0IWFStDqlnCc6KEk/view?usp=drive_link) +- [Further documentation](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13U0idGiOdwr9PlnCD-oSuRk4I39ng1Qj)