Craigslist Usability and User Needs Research Study

Purposive Subject Selection

Five respondents were recruited for the study, chosen randomly from associates at work and school. No deliberate attempt was made to stratify their levels of expertise with the site of interest for this research, Craigslist. The distribution of ages was also completely random, as was the level of knowledge of computers and software. The median age of the sample is 27 years old, and each respondent has or is working toward an undergraduate degree from a four-year institution. Table 1 provides an overview of each respondent's characteristics.

Table 1: Characteristics of Respondents

R1 | M | Age 21 | Computer knowledge: Expert | Craigslist knowledge: Expert
R2 | M | Age 24 | Computer knowledge: Expert | Craigslist knowledge: Medium
R3 | F | Age 32 | Computer knowledge: Expert | Craigslist knowledge: Low
R4 | M | Age 27 | Computer knowledge: Medium | Craigslist knowledge: Expert
R5 | F | Age 28 | Computer knowledge: Expert | Craigslist knowledge: Expert

For the duration of the study, the respondents are identified as R1, R2, R3, R4, and R5. In future revisions where discussions are included, respondents will be referred to as R1D1, R2D2, R3D3, R4D4, and R5D5 to differentiate that specific step of the study.

It is noteworthy that knowledge of Craigslist is not correlated with age, gender, or expertise with computers and software. From R1, who has made entries and corrections on Craigslist, to R3, who has only heard about it and rarely used it, perceptions of its usefulness vary dramatically. Not surprisingly, R3 felt the information on Craigslist was dubious and untrustworthy and chose not to rely on it. R1 and R5 have also found incorrect information on Craigslist and corrected it by contacting the original posters. Both have spent over $1,000 on purchases through the site and have sold items on it for over a year.

The intent of this research is to determine which features, functions, and navigational approaches of the Craigslist website meet users' expectations and needs, which features require improvement, and what attitudes respondents hold toward this globally used website. Purchase experiences on Craigslist are also assessed through the interview process, including the trustworthiness of transactions and overall purchasing experiences.

The data collection process involved in-person interviews using open-ended questions, allowing respondents to define their answers and provide full context. Follow-on interviews will also be completed with the same group. Giving respondents the opportunity to speak freely is critical, and open-ended questions are well suited to this goal. This research study is purely for academic purposes, and the anonymity of respondents is completely disconnected from the analysis of results. Individually collected data will be held in complete confidence.

To ensure greater confidentiality, aggregated results will make it impossible to determine which respondent provided which answer. Using Microsoft Excel and SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences), the data will be further removed from respondents' identities and reduced to nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio-level data to support the robustness of the analysis. All data will be destroyed at the conclusion of the study to ensure the absolute privacy and anonymity of respondents.

Human Subjects Informed Consent

The following questionnaire was designed for this research project. Respondents first provided basic profile information:

Knowledge of computers and software: (Expert, Medium, Low)
Knowledge of Craigslist: (Expert, Medium, Low)
Experience purchasing products or services online: (Expert, Medium, Low)
Age:
Gender:

Respondents then answered the following open-ended questions:

1. What is your favorite feature of Craigslist today, and why?

2. What features does Craigslist need to make it easier to use?

3. Do you often shop across multiple cities and locations on Craigslist for the same item? How could this navigation be improved?

4. Do you find that certain entries on Craigslist are more trustworthy than others? What aspects of a posting make it more trustworthy?

Questionnaire Design and Administration

5. Have you ever found a job using Craigslist?

6. Have you ever purchased an item or service through Craigslist?

7. Did the job you read about on Craigslist match your expectations?

8. Did the product or service you purchased on Craigslist match your expectations?

9. How could the navigation of Craigslist give you greater assurance that the job you were applying for, or the product or service you were purchasing, would be accurately represented?

10. What navigational aids could be added to Craigslist to ensure that job definitions are truthful and products or services are genuine? How can navigation keep the site more credible?

11. Should Craigslist include the option of personalizing its structure to individual needs? Why or why not?