A comprehensive learnability framework for mobile application design for older adults

Older adults are facing great difficulties in learning to use mobile applications. The lack of a comprehensive and structured learnability design framework hinders mobile application designers to incorporate considerations for older adults into their design process.

The purpose of the current study is to provide a consolidated, structured, and updated repertoire of learnability design guidelines for mobile applications used by older people that can be easily accessed, searched, and implemented by designers throughout the design process.

We proposed the Learnability Design for Older Adults (OLD) framework, which contained seven factors, 22 principles, 77 design issues, and 168 design-stage-based learnability guidelines. This framework was developed by integrating the available learnability design guidelines in existing studies and empirical testing involving 13 older adults using 12 mobile applications. We verified feasibility and effectiveness of this framework in practice by applying the framework to the design of a healthcare mobile application for older adults, and comparing the learnability of the original and the redesigned app through an experiment involving 20 older adults.

The OLD framework appeared to be helpful and improved efficiency of design. The participants performed better when using the redesigned app than using the original app, in terms of average success rate, completion time and memory. They also encountered fewer learnability design defects and appraised the redesigned app higher in both scoring and interview.

The OLD framework provided effective learnability design guidance for mobile applications used by older adults.