Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches to Conduct Heuristic Evaluations: A Comparison Study

Heuristic evaluation has become one of the methods most used by specialists to measure the level of usability of software products. However, there are many differences between authors on how to execute this inspection process. From a systematic review of the literature carried out in a previous study, it was possible to identify the two most relevant approaches to carry out this evaluation process: the qualitative approach proposed by Nielsen and the quantitative approach established by Granollers. Although both proposals aim to identify design problems to be corrected subsequently to improve the level of usability, the quantitative proposal also establishes a mechanism to obtain a value between 0 and 100 on the level of usability of the product, system, or service. In this way, it is possible to make comparisons and identify the remaining percentage of a proposal to achieve an appropriate level of usability. In this study, the differences in the results obtained from applying both approaches for the usability evaluation of a publicly accessible website in Peru are analyzed. The purpose is for this research to serve as a guide for executing heuristic evaluations and used for specialists and development teams to choose the most appropriate approach in their business scenarios. The results show that although many findings are similar, both approaches have differences and specific advantages that are discussed in depth.