Evaluating the SSA's
Website Usability
The Project
Over the course of 6 weeks, my team and I conducted a series of expert evaluations and usability tests on the ssa.gov website.
Driven by our individual experiences as caretakers, community members, and social workers, we were compelled to evaluate a website that provided resources to our most vulnerable populations. The result of our user research was a comprehensive set of usability recommendations to improve the Social Security Administration website.
My role consisted of contributing to our expert evaluations, designing our presentations, setting up our quantitative tests, and collaborating with my teammate to write our survey.
My Roles
- UX Researcher
- Survey Copywriter
- UX/UI Designer
- Visual Designer
Tools
- Figma
- Maze
- Usertesting.com
- Qualtrics
- Optimal Workshop
Organization
- UCI MHCID
Project Dates
- Jan 2022 - Mar 2022
Our Goal
Our Approach
Our team employed a combination of research tools, expert evaluations, and usability tests to assess the usability of ssa.gov, specifically regarding disability resources.
Research Tools
- Persona
- Task Flow
Expert Evaluations
- Heuristic Evaluation
- Competitive Analysis
Usability Tests
- Survey via Qualtrics
- Qualitative Test via usertesting.com
- Quantitative Test via Maze
- Card Sort via Optimal Workshop
Establishing Empathy with a Persona
One of the first tasks we tackled was developing a persona based on the general user who may be visiting ssa.gov. This persona would guide our perspective while helping us approach our research with empathy for a potential user.
Developing a Clear Task Flow
We then established our scope by developing a clear task flow that could be used throughout our evaluations and tests. Our task flow was structured around finding information on Disability eligibility, which is a major use case of the ssa.gov website.
Conducting an Heuristic Evaluation
Initial Findings
We conducted an expert heuristic evaluation on ssa.gov using Jakob Nielsen’s 10 Usability Heuristics to quickly identify usability issues within the website. Our team then took inventory of our findings regarding each heuristic.
Affinity Diagram
Using an affinity diagram to evaluate our findings, we discovered that usability issues fell into three major categories: navigation, text hierarchy, and visual design.
Evaluating Comparable Resources
We conducted a competitive analysis to find out what other resources existed for users with disabilities and then compared the usability of these resources.
We found that some competitors offer services, such as short-term disability and critical illness services, that were not offered by the SSA.
Additionally, we observed that most competitor websites were easier to use when it came to finding information. This discovery indicates that our competitors could serve as points of reference for future design choices.
Direct Competitors
InDirect Competitors
Influencer
Surveying Users’ Goals
QUALITRICS | 29 PARTICIPANTS
We employed a survey to understand our users’ values and goals. We found that the primary goal of users was to find information on the ssa.gov website.
Qualitative Testing User Experience
USERTESTING.COM | 6 PARTICIPANTS
Our objective was to gather how users feel and act as they look for information on ssa.gov compared to other resources.
We found 100% of participants preferred navigating competitor websites due to better organization, obvious headings, and clear navigational elements.
Quantitative Testing for Pain Points
QUALITRICS | 29 PARTICIPANTS
Our objective was to pinpoint the most challenging part of finding information on ssa.gov. We found that only 21% of participants could successfully find the disability requirements from the disability landing page — making content pages a priority for changes.
Card Sorting Site Information
OPTIMAL WORKSHOP | 21 PARTICIPANTS
Our objective with our open card sort was to understand how our users expected information on disability to be organized. We found on average, participants made similar groups while using plain language: Disability, Application, Documents, and Information.
Priority Recommendations
Challenges
Time Constraints
Our team had time constraints, particularly regarding the usability evaluations. For more informative and valid results, more time would need to be spent on user testing.
Sampling Needs
Our sampling was also done through convenience sampling, which included participants from our individual circles. A focus on getting more target users for testing would be beneficial in the future.
Agency Limitations
We had to consider the SSA's limitations as a government agency, including different budgets, motivations, legalities, and resources, which contrast with private companies driven by growth, retention, or profit.
Next Steps
Our team conducted thorough user research and usability evaluations on the ssa.gov website. The result of our intensive process was a set of high-priority recommendations that could be implemented to provide a more user-friendly experience for vulnerable populations using ssa.gov.
The recommended next step would be to create a prototype and conduct additional A/B and usability tests. The goal would be to use the comparisons to validate whether our proposed design changes make it easier for users to find information on the ssa.gov website.
