article

An examination of multisession web tasks

Authors:

Carolyn WattersAuthors Info & Claims

Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Volume 63, Issue 6

Pages 1183 - 1197

https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.22610

Published: 01 June 2012 Publication History

Abstract

Today, people perform many types of tasks on the web, including those that require multiple web sessions. In this article, we build on research about web tasks and present an in-depth evaluation of the types of tasks people perform on the web over multiple web sessions. Multisession web tasks are goal-based tasks that often contain subtasks requiring more than one web session to complete. We will detail the results of two longitudinal studies that we conducted to explore this topic. The first study was a weeklong web-diary study where participants self-reported information on their own multisession tasks. The second study was a monthlong field study where participants used a customized version of Firefox, which logged their interactions for both their own multisession tasks and their other web activity. The results from both studies found that people perform eight different types of multisession tasks, that these tasks often consist of several subtasks, that these lasted different lengths of time, and that users have unique strategies to help continue the tasks which involved a variety of web and browser tools such as search engines and bookmarks and external applications such as Notepad or Word. Using the results from these studies, we have suggested three guidelines for developers to consider when designing browser-tool features to help people perform these types of tasks: (a) to maintain a list of current multisession tasks, (b) to support multitasking, and (c) to manage task-related information between sessions. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

References

[1]

Abrams, D., Baecker, R., & Chignell, M. (1998). Information archiving with bookmarks: Personal web space construction and organization. Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 41–48). New York: ACM Press.

[2]

Amento, B., Terveen, L., Hill, W., & Hix, D. (2000). TopicShop, enhanced support for evaluation and organizing collections of Web sites. In Proceedings of the 13th annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (pp. 201–209). New York: ACM Press.

[3]

Amento, B., Terveen, L., Hill, W., Hix, D., & Schulman, R. (2003). Experiment in social data mining: The TopicShop System. ACM Transactions on Computer––Human Interactions, 10(1), 54–85.

[4]

Aula, A., Jhaveri, N., & Kääki, M. (2005). Information search and re-access strategies of experienced web users. Proceedings of the International World Wide Web Conference (WWW) (pp. 583–592). New York: ACM Press.

[5]

Boardman, R., & Sasse, M.A. (2004). ““Stuff goes into the computer and doesn't come out” A cross-tool study of personal information management. In Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 583–590). New York: ACM Press.

[6]

Brown, B., & Sellen, A. (2005, October). Exploring users' experiences of the web. First Monday, 10(6).

[7]

Bruce, H., Jones, W., & Dumais, S. (2004). Keeping and re-finding information on the web: What do people do and what do they need? In Proceedings of the annual meeting of the American Society for Information Science and Technology (pp. 129–137). Medford, NJ: Information Today.

[8]

Byrne, M.D., John, B.E., Wehrle, N.S., & Crow, D.C. (1999). The tangled web we wove: A taskonomy of WWW use. In Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 545–551). New York: ACM Press.

[9]

Catledge, L.D., & Pitkow, J.E. (1995). Characterizing browsing strategies in the World-Wide Web. Computer Networks and ISDN Systems, 27(6), 1065–1073.

Digital Library

[10]

Choo, C.W., Detlor, B., & Turnbull, D. (2000, February). Information seeking on the web: An integrated model of browsing and searching. First Monday, 5(2).

[11]

Cockburn, A., Greenberg, S., McKenzie, B., Jasonsmith, M., & Kaasten, S. (1999) WebView: A graphical aid for revisiting web pages. Proceedings of the OzCHI Australian Conference on Human–Computer Interaction (pp. 15–22). New York: ACM Press.

[12]

Cockburn, A., & McKenzie, B. (2001). What do web users do? An empirical analysis of web use. International Journal of Human––Computer Studies, 54, 903–922.

[13]

Debevc, M., Meyer, B., & Svecko, R. (1997). An adaptive short list for documents on the World Wide Web. In Proceedings of International Conference on Intelligent User Interface (pp. 209–211). New York: ACM Press.

[14]

Di lorio, A., & Vitali, F. (2005). From editable web to global editability. In Proceedings of ACM Conference on Hypertext and Hypermedia (pp. 35–45). New York: ACM Press.

[15]

Dontcheva, M., Drucker, S.M., Wade, G., Salesin, D., & Cohen, M.F. (2006). Summarizing personal web browsing sessions. In Proceedings of the ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (pp. 115–124). New York: ACM Press.

[16]

Jhaveri, N. (2004). Intermediate and post-session web page revisitation techniques and tools (Unpublished master's thesis). University of Tampere, Department of Computer Sciences.

[17]

Jones, W., Bruce, H., & Dumais, S. (2001). Keeping found things found on the web. In Proceedings of International Conference on Information and Knowledge Management (pp. 119–126). New York: ACM Press.

[18]

Kaasten, S., & Greenberg, S. (2001). Integrating back, history and bookmarks in web browsers. In Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 379–380). New York: ACM Press.

[19]

Karger, D.R., & Quan, D. (2004). Haystack: A user interface for creating, browsing and organizing arbitrary semistructured information. Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 777–778). New York: ACM Press.

[20]

Kellar, M., Watters, C., & Shepherd, M. (2006). A goal-based classification of web information tasks. In Proceedings of the annual meeting of the American Society for Information Science and Technology (pp. 1–22). Medford, NJ: Information Today.

[21]

Kellar, M., Watters, C., & Shepherd, M. (2007). A field study characterizing web-based information-seeking tasks. Journal of American Society for Information Science and Technology, 58(7), 999–1018.

Digital Library

[22]

Kim, S., Slater, M., & Whitehead, J. (2004). WebDAV-based hypertext annotation and trail system. In Proceedings of ACM Conference on Hypertext and Hypermedia (pp. 87–88). New York: ACM Press.

[23]

MacKay, B. (2009). Multi-session web tasks (Doctorial dissertation). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses database (UMI No. 1968188821)

[24]

MacKay, B., Kellar, M., & Watters, C. (2005). An evaluation of landmarks for re-finding information on the web. In Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1609–1612). New York: ACM Press.

[25]

MacKay, B., & Watters, C. (2008a). Exploring multi-session web tasks. In Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human––Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1187–1196). New York: ACM Press.

[26]

MacKay, B., & Watters, C. (2008b). Understanding and supporting multi-session web tasks. In Proceedings of the Annual meeting of the American Society for Information Science and Technology (pp. 1–13). Medford, NJ: Information Today.

[27]

MacKay, B., & Watters, C. (2009a). Building support for multi-session web tasks. In Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 4274–4278). New York: ACM Press.

[28]

MacKay, B., & Watters, C. (2009b). Providing support for multi-session tasks. In Proceedings of the annual meeting of the American Society for Information Science and Technology (pp. 1–26). Medford, NJ: Information Today.

[29]

Marchionini, G., & Shneiderman, B. (1988). Finding facts vs. browsing knowledge in hypertext systems. Computer, 21(1), 70––80.

Digital Library

[30]

McBurney, D., & White, T. (2007). Research methods (7th ed.). Belmont, California: Thomson Wadsworth.

[31]

McGrath, J.E. (1995). Methodology matters: Doing research in the behavioral and social sciences. In R.M. Baecker (Ed.), Readings in human–computer interaction: Toward the Year 2000 (pp. 152–169). San Francisco: Morgan Kaufmann.

[32]

Morris, D., Ringel, M., & Venolia, G. (2008). SearchBar: A search-centric web history for task resumption and information re-finding. Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1207–1216). New York: ACM Press.

[33]

Obendorf, H., Weinreich, H., Herder, E., & Mayer, M. (2007). Web page revisited: Implications of a long-term click-stream study of browser usage. In Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human–Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 597–606). New York: ACM Press.

[34]

Sellen, A., Murphy, R., & Shaw, K. (2002). How knowledge workers use the web. Proceedings of the Special Interest Group on Human––Computer Interaction (SIGCHI) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 227–234). New York: ACM Press.

[35]

schraefel, m.c., Zhu, Y., Modjeska, D., Wigdor, D., & Zhao, S. (2002). Hunter gatherer: Interaction support for the creation and management of within-web-page collections. In Proceedings of International World Wide Web Conference (pp. 172–179). New York: ACM Press.

[36]

Sommer, R., & Sommer, B. (1986). The practical guide to behavioral research: Tools and techniques (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.

[37]

Spink, A., Bateman, J., & Greisdorf, H. (1999). Successive searching behavior during mediated information seeking: An exploratory study. Journal of Information Science, 25(6), 439–449.

[38]

Spink, A., Wilson, T.D., Ford, N.A., Foster, A., & Ellis, D. (2002). Information seeking and mediated searching: Part 3. Successive searching. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 53(9), 716–727.

Digital Library

[39]

Stone, D., Jarrett, C., Woodroffe, M., & Minocha, S. (2005). User interface design and evaluation. San Francisco: Morgan Kaufmann.

[40]

Tauscher, L., & Greenberg, S. (1997). How people revisit web pages: Empirical findings and implications for the design of history systems. International Journal of Human–Computer Studies, 47(1), 97–137.

[41]

Teevan, J. (2007). The re:search engine: Simultaneous support for finding and re-finding. In Proceedings of the ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (pp. 23–32). New York: ACM Press.

[42]

Weinreich, H., Obendorf, H., Herder, E., & Mayer, M. (2008). Not quite the average: An empirical study of web use. ACM Transactions on the Web, 2(1), 1––31.

Digital Library

Cited By

Kuo LChang TLai C(2022)Multimedia webpage visual design and color emotion testMultimedia Tools and Applications10.1007/s11042-021-11684-481:2(2621-2636)Online publication date: 1-Jan-2022
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1007/s11042-021-11684-4
Martín-Albo DLeiva LHuang JPlamondon R(2016)Strokes of insightInformation Processing and Management: an International Journal10.1016/j.ipm.2016.04.00552:6(989-1003)Online publication date: 1-Nov-2016
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1016/j.ipm.2016.04.005
Wang TLu W(2015)Constructing Complex Search Tasks with Coherent Subtask Search GoalsACM Transactions on Asian and Low-Resource Language Information Processing10.1145/274254715:2(1-29)Online publication date: 11-Dec-2015
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/2742547
Show More Cited By

Recommendations

A field study characterizing Web-based information-seeking tasks

Previous studies have examined various aspects of user behavior on the Web, including general information-seeking patterns, search engine use, and revisitation habits. Little research has been conducted to study how users navigate and interact with ...
Describing and predicting information-seeking behavior on the Web

This study focuses on the task as a fundamental factor in the context of information seeking. The purpose of the study is to characterize kinds of tasks and to examine how different kinds of task give rise to different kinds of information-seeking ...
Web sites that work: designing with your eyes open
CHI EA '99: CHI '99 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems

This tutorial is inspired by our observations of users struggling with web sites and our consulting work with clients who face the many challenges of web site development. We've witnessed the effects of less-than-optimal web site design and the pain it ...

Comments

Information & Contributors

Information

Published In

cover image Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology

Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology Volume 63, Issue 6

June 2012

222 pages

ISSN:1532-2882

Issue’s Table of Contents

Publisher

John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

United States

Publication History

Published: 01 June 2012

Author Tags

Qualifiers

Article

Contributors

Other Metrics

View Article Metrics

Bibliometrics & Citations

Bibliometrics

Article Metrics

5
Total Citations
View Citations
0
Total Downloads

Downloads (Last 12 months)0
Downloads (Last 6 weeks)0

Reflects downloads up to 30 Aug 2024

Other Metrics

View Author Metrics

Citations

Cited By

Kuo LChang TLai C(2022)Multimedia webpage visual design and color emotion testMultimedia Tools and Applications10.1007/s11042-021-11684-481:2(2621-2636)Online publication date: 1-Jan-2022
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1007/s11042-021-11684-4
Martín-Albo DLeiva LHuang JPlamondon R(2016)Strokes of insightInformation Processing and Management: an International Journal10.1016/j.ipm.2016.04.00552:6(989-1003)Online publication date: 1-Nov-2016
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1016/j.ipm.2016.04.005
Wang TLu W(2015)Constructing Complex Search Tasks with Coherent Subtask Search GoalsACM Transactions on Asian and Low-Resource Language Information Processing10.1145/274254715:2(1-29)Online publication date: 11-Dec-2015
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/2742547
Gooda Sahib NTombros AStockman T(2014)Investigating the behavior of visually impaired users for multi-session search tasksJournal of the Association for Information Science and Technology10.1002/asi.2295565:1(69-83)Online publication date: 1-Jan-2014
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1002/asi.22955
Ma Kay BWatters CCzerwinski MLund ATan D(2008)Exploring multi-session web tasksProceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/1357054.1357243(1187-1196)Online publication date: 6-Apr-2008
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/1357054.1357243

View Options

View options

Get Access

Login options

Check if you have access through your login credentials or your institution to get full access on this article.

Full Access

Get this Publication

Media

Figures

Other

Tables

View Issue’s Table of Contents