Glossary & Terms

User

An individual who is in the “target audience” or the group of people whom the developers would like to use their tool to make it successful.

Developer

An individual who is creating the product or tool.

User Testing

Any process by which feedback from users is gathered on an application or a tool.

Respondent

An individual who will be providing feedback as a user on the application during user testing.

Facilitator

An individual who guides a user or a group of users while they are testing an application or tool and records findings from that user testing.

Testing Manager

The testing manager is responsible for supporting the facilitators by providing the materials they need, answering question on the user testing process, and correlating all of the feedback from user testing.

Testing Goals

These are the goals the developers have for testing the application or tool. It’s important when testing to know why you are testing at this moment; testing goals should be specific and clear so the best Testing Materials can be developed to achieve them.

Testing Materials

These are the supporting materials required to successfully conduct user testing. They can include the testing plan, guides on using the tool, info sheets on logging feedback, feedback forms for testers, and more depending on the user testing needs.

Testing Plan

This document outlines the goals of testing, how testing will be conducted, and what data should be collected from testing (the questions testers should be asked, the behaviors facilitators should look out for, etc.)

Async Testing

Async Testing is when a Respondent is able to complete much or all of the testing process on their own by referencing testing materials provided. The Respondent is given materials to guide them on accessing the application and materials to provide their feedback. The Respondent is asked whether they are open to a follow-up conversation, and a developer may contact them for a follow-up conversation on their testing experience.