Apathy Towards the Integration of Usability Work: A Case of System Justification

Abstract

In this article we report from a case study of a software development organization and we study in particular the developers' and product managers' attitudes towards integrating usability work into software development. We offer explanations based on system justification theory illuminating what would-be integrators might be up against. The analysis shows how the developers only pay lip service to usability work and how they treat users superficially. It further shows how that leads to stereotyping of usability designers and users in order to preserve status quo, and how internalization of inequality between the developers and usability designers rationalizes the preservation of status quo. These findings will have significant implications for managers of software development.• Software developers may claim to adhere to the principles of usability design and evaluation while their practices show the contrary• Usability designers and users may become stereotyped and internalise a perception of inequality.• Developers may cling to status quo and seek to preserve it.• Managers of software development and usability work must pay attention to justification mechanisms to realise the challenges of integration.

Drivers and barriers for design and designers in interdisciplinary product development – a literature-based conceptual model

“…The exemplary causality is implicitly mentioned in the extracted text passage, so it is labeled in Table 2 as implicit. However, most sources in the literature mention the case where a lack of design understanding negatively influences the prioritization of design activities and the allocation of resources (Goffin and Micheli, 2010;Kashfi et al, 2017;Boivie et al, 2006;Wale-Kolade and Nielsen, 2016;Micheli et al, 2018;Kashfi et al, 2019;Nielsen et al, 2023). The "Level of understanding of design" also influences the "Level of collaborative design capability" (Goffin and Micheli, 2010;Kashfi et al, 2017;Micheli et al, 2012;Nielsen et al, 2023).…”

The Role of Design in Interdisciplinary Product Development – Challenges, Research Approaches and Further Research Needs

“…However, management often fails in this prioritization task (Inal et al, 2020). Wale-Kolade and Nielsen (2015) try to explain the discrepancy between existing awareness of the importance of design and the lack of action to implement design.…”

“…According to their study, stereotyping, internalization of inequality and rationalization of status are factors for this discrepancy (Wale-Kolade and Nielsen, 2015).…”

Using member checking in interpretive research practice

“…However, more research is needed because usability work tends to be difficult and ineffective in practice (e.g. Ardito et al , 2014; Gulliksen et al , 2006; Wale-Kolade and Nielsen, 2016). The focus on culture, on the other hand, is relevant because when entering into an organizations, people necessarily also enter into the cultural context of that organization; the culture of a domain always frames the activities and meanings of the domain (Brown et al , 1989).…”