ABSTRACT

Involving the Audience: A Rhetorical Perspective on Using Social Media to Improve Websites examines the usability challenges raised by large complex websites and proposes ways the social web can expand usability research to address these new challenges. Using the website healthcare.gov as an initial illustration, Breuch explains how large complex websites are inherently challenged by open-ended, interactive tasks that often have multiple pathways to completion. These challenges are illustrated through two in-depth case studies, each addressing the launch of an interactive, complex website designed for a large public audience.

chapter 1|24 pages

The Social Web Imperative

chapter 2|26 pages

Rhetorical Roots of Audience Involvement

chapter 3|24 pages

Social Web Usability Research Method(s)

chapter 4|39 pages

Failure and Fallout/Response and Recovery

chapter 5|33 pages

Trouble with Searches/Managing Change

chapter 6|17 pages

Audience Involved/Audience Initiated

chapter |7 pages

Methodological Appendix