User perception of the usability and performance of translingual features of a Russian financial Web site.

摘要

This research study is an investigation of the perception of users of the Usability and Performance of the translingual features of a Russian financial Web site. The translingual features include Original version in the Russian language, Parallel version in English maintained by the staff of the site, and Translated version also in English created using the machine translation tool available on the Web.; As a part of this research three groups of university students in the U.S. and Russia participated in user surveys and focus group interviews. Usability was assessed utilizing criteria of Efficiency, Affect, Adaptability, Helpfulness and Control. Quality of Performance was evaluated using Retrieval Features, User Effort, and Measures of Effectiveness. Results were compared by criteria and by separate factors between the three groups of users. The results were also tested in terms of how the translingual feature is associated with all the Usability and Quality scores. A third component includes a phenomenological analysis of prevailing factors of the Lebenswelt of users, elicited from focus group interviews and qualitative open-ended questions of the survey.; Results show that while all three versions of the Russian financial site with translingual features are perceived differently in terms of Usability and Performance, all three are adequate for use in the international financial community. Strong and weak points of the multilingual Russian site were identified and ways for improvement were suggested. Phenomenological analysis of the Lebenswelt of the users showed the nature of the human environment that influences creation and use of the translingual features and must be accounted for. A conceptual evaluation framework and an instrument in Russian and English languages for evaluation of the multilingual financial sites were created.; Present research demonstrated that Translated version is an adequate translingual feature, and the current trend of creating Parallel versions on the Web might segue into a stage when Translated versions will effectively compete with Parallel ones. Localization will evolve into Globalization. When this happens, as a result of massive internationalization of the Internet, the linguistic "iron curtain" will fall and the World Wide Web will become truly global. As one of the participants pointed out in the focus group, translingual features "will create a global society."