Mixed feelings?: the relationship between perceived usability and user experience in the wild

Although both user experience and perceived usability have been extensively studied, the relationship between the two is less well understood. Prior empirical research suggests that perceived usability influences especially negative user experiences, but the effect depend on goals, contexts, and expectations. The paper contributes on this theme with description of a field study covering self-reporting of 12 subjects using a new smartphone. The findings confirm some earlier views on the relationship but also permit a richer understanding. Unlike prior work, the results show that perceived usability can play an important role in ambivalent experiential episodes. These episodes emerge from a clash between desired uses and either poor perceived usability or lack of appropriateness in the broader social context. We discuss our findings in relation to prior studies.