User Engagement Research and Practice

This book presents a holistic overview of user engagement, which has become an increasingly important subject for a variety of industry and academic fields, including engineering, computer science, and information science. The author begins with a definition of user engagement and an explanation of the theoretical background of the topic. The book then covers methodological approaches and examines some of the broader factors that influence user engagement. The author explains methods for measuring user engagement and evaluates the efficacy of each one. The book includes examples from recent research studies throughout, describing user engagement in different settings with a variety of digital information systems.

Heather O’Brien, Ph.D., is a Full Professor at the School of Information at the University of British Columbia, where she teaches and researches in the areas of human information interaction and research methods. Dr. O’Brien has contributed numerous highly cited, referred journal and conference publications, and her research interests include building a sound theoretical foundation for the study of user engagement (UE); developing, evaluating, and promoting effective methodological tools and techniques for its measurement; and exploring the role of UE as a mediator for learning, quality of life, and knowledge sharing outcomes with digital information and health applications. Her User Engagement Scale (UES), a valid and reliable experiential questionnaire designed to understand digitally mediated user experiences, is used internationally and has been translated into multiple languages.