User Experience & Usability for Mobile Geo-referenced Apps. A Case Study Applied to Cultural Heritage Field

The mobile revolution has become the main access gate to Internet in a diffused communication ecosystems. Consequently the apps become the interface mediation between the user and the real/virtual space of information. The opportunity of associating data to a physical position requires deeper thought: this means the interweaving between perception of the real-world, representation in digital systems and the mental model of users.

The research presented proposes an extension of user testing methodologies – of the user-centered design – applied to user interaction with mobile app in which the geo-referenced feature is the focus of the user experience. In particular, the case study

The Bethroted 2.0

becomes the experimental research field. Using a mixed methodology approach – qualitative interviews, in-field research and spatial user tests according to both ambient psychology and user-centered design – the prototype is tested. The experimental activities were addressed analyze both the environmental interactions and with the app trying to better understand the relations between real and digital space and the mental model of the users.