Modeling the Usability of University Websites as a Tool for Their
Online Competitiveness in the Context of COVID-19
Hanna Kucherova
1a
, Abdukhakim Mamanazarov
2b
, Yuliia Honcharenko
3c
,
Tatiana Petrishyna
1d
and Dmytro Ocheretin
4e
1
Department of business management, State University of Economics and Technology, Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine
2
Founder of the Center of Economic Culture Development, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
3
Classic Private University, 70b, Zhukovsky street, Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine
4
Department of Economic, Zaporizhzhia National University, Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine
petrishina_to@duet.edu.ua
Keywords: Usability, Higher Education Institutions, Site, Assessment, Behavior, Stakeholders, Recurrent Analysis,
Fuzzy Model.
Abstract: In the article, the formulation and solution of the problem of generalization and conceptualization of the
methodology for the study of the usability of the websites of higher educational institutions is carried out in
order to substantiate the system of support for making managerial decisions to increase its level. The authors
supplemented the classical understanding of the study of the usability of websites with the tasks of analyzing
the behavior of stakeholders in higher educational institutions by methods of fractal and recurrent analyzes in
order to track the nature of online behavior of stakeholders in different periods of time and the reaction of
online users to the content and structure of the site. At the same time, the results of sociological research were
supplemented by the methodology of fuzzy mathematics with minimization of uncertainty and subjectivity in
the process of evaluating usability, which made it possible to substantiate the rules for supporting decision-
making on improving the usability of eight websites of higher education institutions within the limits of the
expressed online interest of stakeholders in different periods of the educational process.
1 INTRODUCTION
In the face of a pandemic, all activities moved
automatically to an online environment, where
quarantine restrictions did not hold back on the way
to achieving results. The new conditions of existence
revealed those entity who were not touched or
partially touched by digitalization. Limited use of
digital opportunities and insufficient digital literacy
significantly hinder market relations in all spheres of
socio-economic activity. The extent to which
quarantine rules were limited in each country was
partly different, so the markets did not function in the
same conditions. The main success factor was the
a
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8635-6758
b
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4253-7629
c
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1567-8618
d
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7772-5793
e
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6705-6381
100% willingness to work online and the ability to
maximize online demand.
A significant transformation has taken place in the
education sector, where the online mode of activity
dominated during periods of quarantine. This greatly
influenced the quality of education, showed the
unwillingness of individual organizations to quickly
adapt , revealed areas of non-coverage of educational
and related processes with digital technologies. Sites
have become the main instrument of interaction
between higher educational institutions and users of
educational services in the online environment, and
educational institutions share educational platforms,
software tools for online learning and information
sites (their business cards). The variety of digital
426
Kucherova, H., Mamanazarov, A., Honcharenko, Y., Petrishyna, T. and Ocheretin, D.
Modeling the Usability of University Websites as a Tool for Their Online Competitiveness in the Context of COVID-19.
DOI: 10.5220/0011364100003350
In Proceedings of the 5th International Scientific Congress Society of Ambient Intelligence (ISC SAI 2022) - Sustainable Development and Global Climate Change, pages 426-435
ISBN: 978-989-758-600-2
Copyright
c
2022 by SCITEPRESS Science and Technology Publications, Lda. All rights reserved
educational technologies has made it necessary to
find the right ones for a particular institution.
Educational websites have also been a product of
educational institutions 'aspirations to simultaneously
comply with Ministry of Education regulations and
education stakeholders' information needs, which are
inherently quite different. This raises the question of
the openness of all areas of activity of educational
institutions online, ensuring free access to the results
of activities on sites, completeness of disclosure of
information online, which is the basis for making
decisions by stakeholders regarding further
interaction and, thereby, a tool of competitiveness
(Uchitel et al., 2020).
Therefore, one of the key tasks of today is the
development of modern approaches, models and
research methods, usability management as a
phenomenon that is a factor in the effectiveness of
modern educational reforms, digitalization,
requirements for openness and transparency of the
information society in the online environment.
Educational institutions again need to gain
confidence in themselves, in their educational
product, which has been transformed in accordance
with the online requirements of educational
processes, provided, at least, to maintain, and
maximum to improve the quality of education and
provide a system to support information transparency
of activities in general.
The functioning and development of the sphere of
higher education as a participant in market relations
under conditions of quarantine restrictions must obey
modern trends in the development of the economy,
taking into account its digitalization, changes in the
interests of all groups of stakeholders, and the
educational space as a whole.
Usability is an effective tool for providing
participants in educational processes with effective
interaction in an online environment, which must be
skillfully used in order to ensure competitiveness not
only offline, but also online (Abran et al., 2003;
Manzoor et al., 2012). Given the sufficient popularity
and development of the tasks of ensuring usability in
modern conditions, each website of a higher
educational institution is unique in its own way,
therefore, it requires an autonomous and independent
assessment of usability in order to maintain a high
level of communication development and its own
competitiveness. At the same time, each entity is
faced with a number of problems regarding the way
and method of conducting a usability study, the
results of which will be unambiguous and accurate
assessments. This is due to the weak structure of the
very concept of usability and the human nature of its
definition.
The purpose of the article is to substantiate the
methodology for obtaining unambiguous and
accurate assessments of the usability of websites of
higher education institutions and ways to improve it.
The object of the research is the process of
achieving the usability of the websites of higher
education institutions.
The subject of the research is the conceptual,
methodological foundations of assessment, modeling
of the values of the parameters of the usability of
sites.
2 USABILITY RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
The essence of site usability is usually understood as
the degree of user satisfaction from the convenience
of using the site for making decisions on further
interaction with the owner of the site (Nielsen, 1996).
In the study of usability, the reaction of users to a
certain state of the system is studied, that is, the
content of the existing content, its visualization, the
structure of the site, in order to find effective
interaction between subjects and objects of research
in the online environment. To increase the reliability
of assessments of the usability of the website of
higher education institutions, it is necessary to take
into account the specifics of the activity, the specifics
of the information interests of stakeholders, the
frequency of interest shown in different periods of the
scientific process, the requirements of the Ministry of
Education for information content, and more.
The authors' conceptual vision of the
methodology for researching the usability of the
website of a higher educational institution and the
results of applying the methods that are presented in
individual publications are shown in Figure 1.
Modeling the Usability of University Websites as a Tool for Their Online Competitiveness in the Context of COVID-19
427
Figure 1: The methodology for researching the usability of the website of a higher educational institution.
The authors carried out a preliminary study and
proved that the series of dynamics of the frequency of
requests for university websites in the study make it
possible to characterize the model of online
stakeholder behavior in terms of seasonality, identify
trajectory segments and cycles, assess the stability of
the system and measures of recurrence, in general, the
degree of predictability of behavior (Kucherova et al.,
2021). Data on the nature of online behavior of
stakeholders is valuable from the point of view of the
need to manage the behavior of stakeholders in the
context of ensuring information transparency of
interaction, distributing the attention of stakeholders
online for the entire period of the educational process,
assessing the reaction of stakeholders to changes in
the information content of the site, promoting career
guidance events, and more.
The essence of the concept of usability is based on
the nature of human perception of information,
images, therefore, the main method of usability
research is based on the methodology of conducting
sociological research in terms of surveys,
questionnaires, etc (Kaur et al., 2016; Inal, 2018;
Sivaji et al., 2011). Therefore, it is difficult to achieve
clarity of reliability of estimates. The weak point in
the study remains the choice of criteria for evaluating
usability, since there are many sets of indicators that,
according to different author's approaches, partially
coincide, but differ in individual indicators (Harrati et
al.,2016; Honcharenko et al., 2020; Hornbæk, 2010;
Inal, 2018; Jabar et al., 2014; Kalra et al., 2011;
Ozkan et al., 2009; Santos et al., 2014; Unal et al.,
2011). The criterial selection is based on marketing
markers for evaluating the site, its content, and
structure. It should be borne in mind that all the
results of a questionnaire, a survey, and other
methods of sociological research will be relevant only
as of the date these results are obtained due to the
variability of the opinions of the respondents.
Nevertheless, the approach is relevant and provides
some valuable results. Research shows that the
leaders of the ratings of higher educational
institutions decided the issue of ensuring site usability
a long time ago and continue to maintain its quality.
Higher educational institutions that have not come to
the fore have a number of online challenges, which
are also partly related to usability issues.
By virtue of their inaccurate nature and
subjectivity of the results of the study of usability, the
formation of its multidimensional and multifaceted
estimates is quite difficult to summarize. The search
for the appropriate method of research remains
relevant, the use of which would leverage limb and
supplement the results of sociological research. The
Recurrent and fractal analyzes
of the series of the frequency
of requests for a website of a
higher educational institution
Characteristics of the model of the
b
ehavior of stakeholders:
recurrent states of the system, cyclicality, phase portraits
within the limits of interest shown in different periods of the
educational process
Structuring knowledge about
website usability:concept,
criteria, research methods
Sociological studies of the
usability of the website of a
higher educational institution
Fuzzy inference model about
the usability of the website of
a higher educational
institution
Rules for supporting decision-making on improving the
usability of the website of a higher educational institution
within the limits of interest shown in different periods of the
educational process
N
otion, criteria, methods of researching the usability of a
website of a higher educational institution
Questionnaire based on reasonable usability criteria and
point assessment of survey results
ISC SAI 2022 - V International Scientific Congress SOCIETY OF AMBIENT INTELLIGENCE
428
authors consider it appropriate to use the apparatus of
fuzzy logic. The input variables will perform the
usability criteria, an output linguistic variable - an
indicator characterizing the level of usability of the
sites of highest educational institutions. The model
will include a knowledge base that will contain a
sequence of obtaining fuzzy logical conclusions to
determine the quantitative importance of the usability
of the highest educational institution.
The resulting model of fuzzy logical conclusion
of users of higher educational institutions makes
sense to use to conduct an experimental study of the
impact of factors for users of sites. In a result of an
alternate change in the values of the factors by 10%,
it is possible to establish the factors of the
implementation of direct and maximum impacts and
factors that do not lead to changes in the source
indicator of usability, the indirect effect of which can
be activated and enhanced by the simultaneous
influence of an additional factor, which is more
responsible for reality, because in real environment
factors really affect simultaneously.
Thus, the classical understanding of the study of
the usability sites is supplemented by the tasks of
analyzing the stakeholders of higher educational
institutions by methods of fractal and recurrent
analyzes in order to track the nature of online
behavior of stakeholders in different periods of time
and user response on content, site structure. At the
same time, the results of sociological studies are
complemented by the methodology of fuzzy
mathematics with minimizing uncertainty and
subjectivity in the process of appreciation of
usability, which will justify the rules for supporting
the decision to increase the usability of the highest
educational institution within the desired interest of
stakeholders online in different periods of the
educational process. Thus, the methodology for
studying the usability sites of universities is
significant expanded and supplemented.
3 USABILITY RESEARCH
PRACTICE
3.1 Results of Recurrent and Fractal
Analysis
The authors conducted a study of the behavior of
higher education institutions' stakeholders by
quantitative indicators that characterize the online
behavior of their stakeholders and represent the
frequency of requests for eight higher education
institutions(NTUU “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic
Institute”, Taras Shevchenko National University of
Kyiv, Lviv Polytechnic National University, V.N.
Karazin Kharkiv National University, Sumy State
University, Interregional Academy of Personnel
Management, Kharkiv University, Academy of
Advocacy of Ukraine) in the Google Trends service
for the period from November,18 2015 to June,18
2020.The methodology was used fractal and recurrent
analyzes according to (Kucherova, et al., 2021). The
results of fractal analysis testified to the persistence
of all studied time series of the frequency of online
inquiries of stakeholders. It has been proven that time
series have trends, future values depend on past ones,
and are predicted based on data on previous values.
Therefore, the expressed interest of stakeholders in
the highest educational institutions is trend-stable.
Based on the results of a recurrent analysis of the
series of dynamics of the frequency of online queries
about the studied institutions of higher education
(Kucherova, et al., 2021), it was revealed that the
online behavior of stakeholders has a periodic,
pronounced seasonal character with bursts of
information activity of stakeholders in the summer,
which corresponds to certain stages of the educational
process. Incoming data studies have identified
trajectory segments that return to the same region of
phase space at different periods, but in a different
qualitative state. For a significant period, the online
behavior of stakeholders is more stable, and the
system tends to be laminar. Phase portraits of the
behavior of stakeholders in the studied institutions in
terms of the frequency of online requests are
characterized by the presence of cycles, the diameter
and length of which changes, which corresponds to
changes in the activity of stakeholders at different
time intervals of the educational process. To compare
the constructed recurrent time series diagrams of
online behavior of stakeholders the quantitative
analysis was carried out.
The value of the recurrence measure for all
studied time series proves the regularity and
definiteness of the dynamics of changes in time series
of online behavior of stakeholders. According to the
value of the indicator measure of determinism, the
most predictable and unpredictable in behavior
among the studied higher educational institutions
were identified. However, the average predictability
time for all higher education institutions is rather low.
The length of the trend is also insignificant for all
institutions of higher education. In the online
behavior of the stakeholders of higher education
institutions, short-term losses of the recurrence of
states are traced in a certain period of time, or the
Modeling the Usability of University Websites as a Tool for Their Online Competitiveness in the Context of COVID-19
429
dynamic system showed fewer recurring states than
in the previous study period.
3.2 Synthesis of Sociological and
Marketing Research of Website
Usability
The author's experience of using the synthesis of
sociological and marketing research is presented in
(Honcharenko, et al., 2020), where a survey was
carried out of “potential applicants and students in
order to determine the compliance of the websites of
higher educational institutions with the usability
criteria,” where, as a result, 1170 stakeholders were
surveyed according to a reasonable set of criteria,
namely:x
1
download speed;x
2
–convenience; x
3
effectiveness, x
4
relevance; x
5
availability; x
6
interactivity; x
7
cross browser compatibility; x
8
lack of forced content; x
9
attractiveness of design;
x
10
–satisfaction allocated and researched in a certain
period of timet (Honcharenko, et al., 2020). Diagram
of the distribution of respondents by answering about
the level of satisfaction from working with the site is
on the Figure 2.
Figure 2: Diagram of the distribution of respondents by answering the question: rate the level of satisfaction from working
with the site on a 5-point scale (1 point – not satisfied, 5 points – completely satisfied), for the period of August 2020.
Based on the results of the point assessment and
taxonomic analysis, the following values of the
integral indicator of the usability of the sites were
obtained: NTUU “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic
Institute” 0.801; Taras Shevchenko National
University of Kyiv– 0.647;Sumy State University–
0.787; Lviv Polytechnic National University–
0.785;N. Karazin Kharkiv National University–
0.532;Interregional Academy of Personnel
Management 0.77; Kharkiv University– 0.697;
Academy of Advocacy of Ukraine– 0.562, where
usability is in the interval from 0 to 1.These results
served as a starting point for improving the usability
of sites and conducting system monitoring of the
values of its parameters.carried out.
Separately, the study was conducted on the
indicators of web-analytics sites of the leading
universities of Kryvyi Rih region (Table 1).
The results of the comparative analysis, shown in
Table 1, once again prove the importance of website
usability research. High values of usability indicators
were observed at Kryvyi Rih State Pedagogical
University, average value has Kryvyi Rih National
University. Low level of values of the usability
parameters have the State University of Economics
and Technology and Mykhailo Tuhan-Baranovskiy
Donetsk National University of Economics and
Trade. According to the above, the indicators of web
analytics differ significantly. For example, Kryvyi
Rih State Pedagogical University and Kryvyi Rih
National University have the lowest refusal rate (the
percentage of sessions during which users viewed
only one page of the site without initiating additional
requests).
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100
%
NTUU “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”
Taras Shevchenko National Univers ity of Kyiv
Sumy State University
Lviv Polytechnic National University
V.N.Karazin Kharkiv National University
Interregional Academy of Personnel Management
Kharkiv University
Academy of Advocacy of Ukraine
1
2
3
4
5
ISC SAI 2022 - V International Scientific Congress SOCIETY OF AMBIENT INTELLIGENCE
430
Table 1: Comparative analysis of the main indicators of web analytics of the leading institutions of higher education in Kryvyi
Rih for the period June 2021 - November 2021. (Generated by the authors using the SpyMetrics service).
Institutions of higher education
Visits,
attendance
Time on site,
min.
Pages per visit,
units
Refusal rate, %
State University of Economics and
Technology
10780 1,25 1,20 79,87
Kryvyi Rih National University 25330 2,58 3,17 34,15
MykhailoTuhan-Baranovskiy
Donetsk National University of
Economics and Trade
10600 5,55 6,29 67,40
Kryvyi Rih State Pedagogical
University
987500 8,28 9,20 34,64
This can be explained, among other things, by the
fact that it is easy to find the necessary information
on the websites of these establishments. The same
cannot be said about the remaining establishments.
State University of Economics and Technology has
the highest refusal rate at 79.87%. The situation can
be explained by the fact that the sections are not
conveniently located on the site: it is difficult for
students, especially applicants and parents, to find the
information they need. In addition, such important
sections as, for example, "Admission to the
magistracy" and "Cost of Education" were not
completed for a long time. Some sections ("Student",
"Leisure", "Sports") contained outdated information.
In general, there was no section dedicated to the
international activities of the university. From the
point of view of students, a special problem was
identified the schedule, which was provided without
distribution to faculties, specialties and courses.
An in-depth study of the usability of the official
website of the State University of Economics and
Technology was carried out. The research
methodology was based on conducting desk research
through a survey (Google form) and personal
communication with students. The results showed a
low level of usability parameters, which is why the
university website is not popular either among
students or among applicants. Some principles of
usability were violated, namely:
the rule of three clicks - in order to get
to some sections (for example, specialties and cost of
education), it was necessary to make a long transition;
logical and structured content – the site
contained a variety of information that prevented the
user from finding what he needed (for example,
windows with events and news overlapped any page);
convenient navigation - the majority
of respondents (30.2%) indicated the difficulty of
finding the necessary information on the site (for
example, the schedule of classes in a specialty and
course);
fast loading of site pages this is
especially true for mobile phones and other gadgets.
The site was not adapted to the specified devices.
To correct the situation with the usability of the
State University of Economics and Technology,
improvements were proposed in several areas, in
particular: adaptation of the site to mobile devices;
revision of the site navigation, namely:
bringing to the fore, in addition to
information about the university, its structural
divisions and the conditions of admission, also
information about the schedule, MOODLE,
specialties, international activities and the "Student"
section;
updating information in the sections
dedicated to sports, leisure, the Student Council of the
self-government;
complete change of the "Schedule"
section in the context of providing information on
structural divisions, specialties and courses; creation
and filling of a section dedicated to the international
activities of the university.
Special attention was paid to the "Student"
section, where it was proposed to improve navigation;
add the Student Communications Center to the
contact’s section; create a subdivision "Our
Achievements", sections on parallel learning and dual
education; add visual content to a subsection of the
university library. It should be noted that most of the
recommendations were implemented, which
significantly affected the level of site usability and the
number of visits.
Thus, introspection and self-assessment of the
usability of university websites should become a
tradition in the context of an active online regime for
Modeling the Usability of University Websites as a Tool for Their Online Competitiveness in the Context of COVID-19
431
the provision of educational services. The frequency
of research depends on the specialization of the
higher education institution, but at least once a year.
The systematic results of the usability analysis will
form the basis of the knowledge base about the
preferences, reactions and information requests of
stakeholders in order to maximize their satisfaction.
As a result, a higher education institution will respond
as quickly as possible to the needs of stakeholders,
thereby increasing its competitiveness.
3.3 Fuzzy Inference of Site Usability
For a complex solution of the problem of leveling
subjectivity and uncertainty, the apparatus of fuzzy
logic was used (Huang, et al., 2010; Muhammad, et
al., 2021).The input variables of the constructed
model are ten usability criteria x
i
(i=1,...,10), justified
by the authors, and the output linguistic variable is the
indicator, which characterizes the level of usability of
the website of a higher educational institution (I
us
).A
symmetric Gaussian form of the membership
function is chosen for both input and output variables,
which is due to its sufficient flexibility and ease of
use. The model was implemented in the Fuzzy Logic
Toolbox MatLab environment using the Mamdani
algorithm:
()
12345678910
,,,,,,,,,
us
Ifxxxxxxxxxx=
,
[0;1].
us
I
(1
)
As the input parameters of the model, the ratio of
the scores obtained for each usability criterion for the
survey results to the maximum possible number of
points for a separate criterion was used. A base of 180
fuzzy production rules was formed, which contains a
fuzzy inference mechanism, which allows us to draw
a conclusion about the level of site usability. The
simulation results provide a more accurate
understanding of the directions for making further
effective management decisions to ensure the
usability of the site.
As a result of the simulation, it was revealed that
the NTUU site Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic
Institute” has a high level of usability, sites of Sumy
State University, Lviv Polytechnic National
University, Interregional Academy of Personnel
Management, Kharkiv University and Taras
Shevchenko National University of Kyiv have
sufficient degree. Middle degree have sites of the
Academy of Advocacy of Ukraine and V. N. Karazin
Kharkiv National University.
To support the adoption of managerial decisions
about ensuring the usability of sites, decision-making
models were substantiated on the basis of an
experimental study of the influence of the values of
the criteria on the usability of sites of higher
educational institutions:
()
12345678910
,,,,,,,,,
us
I
fxxxxxxxxxxΔ= ΔΔΔΔΔΔΔΔΔΔ
(2
)
For this purpose, the input variables of the model
were divided into two sets criteria for direct and
criteria for indirect impact. The influence of the
criteria of direct influence on the value of the initial
indicator is determined. For the criteria of indirect
impact, pairs of criteria have been identified, the
simultaneous action of which enhances and activates
their cumulative effect on the level of the initial value
of the site usability.
So, the set of us ability criteria
{
}
i
x=
(i=1,...,10) was presented in the for mofauni on of
two sets
P
N
, where Pis a set of factors of direct in
fluence,
N
is a set of factors of indirection fluence,
and the intersection of the sesetsisanemptyset
PN∩=
(3
)
To determine whether the criterionx
i
(i=1,...,10)
belongs to one of the two sets (
P
or
N
), dependency
graphs are built:
()
us i i
I
gx=
(
______
1,10i = )
(4)
Then
() , ( )
() , ( )
ii i
ii i
if g x const then x P
if g x const then x N
≠∈
=∈
(5)
The effect of a simultaneous increase in the value
of all criteria was determined. As a result, decision-
making models for finding reserves and unlocking the
potential for ensuring the convenience of using the
site were built for each higher educational institution.
For site of NTUU “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv
Polytechnic Institute” changes in the values of
convenience (x
2
) and relevance (x
4
) act as a reserve
for ensuring online information transparency in terms
of site usability:
( ,1,1 , , , , , , , , ) 1,024
1 2345678910
f
xxxxxxxxxx I
us
=
,
(6)
(,,,1,1,,,,, , )1,013
123 45678 910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
us
=
(7)
ISC SAI 2022 - V International Scientific Congress SOCIETY OF AMBIENT INTELLIGENCE
432
The usability of the site will improve by 2,6%,
provided that all criteria are improved by 10%
The ways of unlocking the potential of
information transparency of the site Taras
Shevchenko National University of Kyiv is to
simultaneously increase the values of efficiency (x
3
)
and interactivity (x
6
) and, separately, relevance (x
4
):
( , ,1,1 , , ,1,1 , , , , ) 1,071
12 345 678 910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
u
s
=
,
(8)
(,,,1,1,,,,, , )1,077
123 45678 910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
us
=
(9)
The best usability effect of the site will improve
by 10,42%, provided that all criteria are improved by
10%
Forsite of Sumy State University changes in the
values of convenience (x
2
), efficiency (x
3
) and
relevance (x
4
) act as a potential for ensuring online
information transparency in terms of site usability:
(,1,1 , , , , , , , , ) 1,011
1 2345678 910
f
xxxxxxxxxx I
us
=
,
(10)
( , ,1,1 , , ,1,1 , , , , ) 1, 008
12 345 678 910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
u
s
=
,
(11)
(,,,1,1,,,,, , )1,005
123 45678 910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
us
=
(12)
Increasing all factors at the same time gives a
better result (usability improvement by 2,64%)
The potential for information transparency of site
Lviv Polytechnic National University is realized
subject to an increase in the values of convenience
(x
2
) by 40% and accessibility (x
5
) by10%, as well as
convenience (x
2
) by 40% and design (x
9
) by 10%:
( ,1, 4 , , ,1, 1 , , , , , ) 1, 09
1 234 5678 910
f
xxxxxxxxxx I
u
=
,
(13)
( ,1, 4 , , , ,1,1 , , ,1,1 , ) 1, 08
1 2345 678 910
f
xxxxxxxxxx
I
=
(14)
However, a simultaneous increase in factor
convenience (x
2
) by 40%, and all other factors by 10%
is more effective elements of influencing the usability
of the site (increase by 9,29%).
It is possible to ensure information transparency
of the site V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University
by increasing the value of convenience (x
2
),
efficiency (x
3
), loading speed (x
1
) and interactivity
(x
6
), accessibility (x
5
) and interactivity (x
6
):
(,1,1, , , , , , ,1.1, ) 1,044
1 2345678 910
f
xxxxxxxx xx I
us
=
,
(15)
( , ,1, 1 , , , , , , 1.1 , ) 1, 031
12 345678 910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
us
=
,
(16)
(1,1,,,,,1,1,,, , )1,084
12345 678 910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
us
=
,
(17)
( , , , ,1, 1 ,1, 1 , , , , ) 1, 042
12345678910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
u
s
=
.
(18)
A simultaneous increase in all factors by 10% will
cause an increase in the value of the usability indicator
by 12.25%.
For site Interregional Academy of Personnel
Management, the reserves of ensuring online
information transparency are concentrated in
convenience(x
2
) by 30% together with the
attractiveness of design(x
9
) by 10%, as well as
increasing the value of convenience(x
2
)by 30% and
accessibility(x
5
) by 10%:
( ,1, 3 , , , , , , , 1, 1 , ) 1, 036
1 2345678 910
f
xxxxxxxx xx I
u
s
=
,
(19)
( ,1, 3 , , ,1, 1 , , , , , ) 1, 02
1 234 5678 910
f
xxxxxxxxxx I
us
=
(20)
A simultaneous increase in factor convenience
(x
2
) by 30%, and all other factors by 10% is more
effective elements of influencing the usability of the
site (increase by 4,32%).
It is recommended to ensure information
transparency of site Kharkiv University from the
point of view of stakeholders by increasing the value
of convenience (x
2
) by 40% and accessibility (x
5
) by
10%, increasing the value of convenience (x
2
) by 40%
and attractiveness of the design (x
9
) by 10%:
( ,1, 4 , , ,1, 1 , , , , , ) 1, 025
1 234 5678 910
f
xxxxxxxxxx I
us
=
,
(21)
(,1,4 , , , , , , ,1,1, ) 1,023
1 2345678 910
f
x xxxxxxx xx I
us
=
.
(
22)
Modeling the Usability of University Websites as a Tool for Their Online Competitiveness in the Context of COVID-19
433
A simultaneous increase in factor convenience
(x
2
) by 40%, and all other factors by 10% is more
effective elements of influencing the usability of the
site (increase by 6,58%).
For site Academy of Advocacy of Ukraine, the
factors of an effective influence on information
transparency are to increase the importance of the
relevance of the site (x
4
) and the satisfaction of
stakeholders from using the site (x
10
):
( , , ,1, 1 ,1, 1 , , , , , ) 1, 026
123 4 5678 910
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
u
s
=
,
(23)
( , , , , , , , , ,1, 1 ) 1, 014
12345678 9 10
f
xx x x x x x x x x I
us
=
.
(
24)
A simultaneous increase in all factors by 10% is
more effective elements of influencing the usability
of the site (increase by 2,73%).
The implementation of the models will make it
possible to ensure the quality of the provision of
educational services within the boundaries of
building stakeholder interactions in the online
environment.
4 CONCLUSIONS
The article summarizes the results of previous studies
of the usability of websites of higher education
institutions. The essence of usability in work is taken
as the degree of user satisfaction from the
convenience of using the site for making decisions on
further interaction with the owner of the site. In the
study of usability, the reactions of users to a certain
state of the system are studied, that is, the content of
the existing content, its visualization, the structure of
the site, in order to search for effective interaction
between subjects and objects of research in the online
environment, taking into account their specificity of
activity and the features of information requests.
The authors supplemented the classical
understanding of the study of the usability of websites
with the tasks of analyzing the conduct of
stakeholders of higher educational institutions by
methods of fractal and recurrent analyzes in order to
track the nature of online behavior of stakeholders in
different periods of time and the reaction of online
users to the content and structure of the site. The basis
of the study of online behavior is the confirmed
hypothesis that the online behavior of stakeholders
can be studied by the indicator of the frequency of
requests for the websites of educational institutions in
search engines, the recurrent analysis of the series of
dynamics of which revealed seasonal bursts of
information activity and the manifestation of stable
interests of the target audience during the annual
admission campaigns, the presence of a random
component and concentration overload of active entry
companies in the studied higher education
institutions.
At the same time, the results of sociological
studies (questionnaires) of usability were
supplemented by the methodology of fuzzy
mathematics with minimization of uncertainty and
subjectivity in the process of assessing usability,
which made it possible to substantiate the rules for
supporting decision-making on improving the
usability of the websites of the studied higher
educational institutions within the limits of the
expressed interest of stakeholders online at different
periods of the educational process.
For a qualitative change in sites with a high level
of usability, it is recommended to revise the site
structure and content in principle, since the system
has reached its peak. Sites with a sufficient and
average usability score have the potential to meet the
information needs of stakeholders, for which
guidelines for its disclosure have been developed.
The practical implementation of the decision support
rules will ensure the quality of the provision of
educational services within the framework of
established online interaction between higher
educational institutions and their stakeholders.
Thus, the methodology for studying the usability
of websites of higher education institutions has been
significantly expanded and supplemented.
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