An In-Situ Study of Mobile App & Mobile Search Interactions

When trying to satisfy an information need, smartphone users frequently transition from mobile search engines to mobile apps and vice versa. However, little is known about the nature of these transitions nor how mobile search and mobile apps interact. We report on a 2-week, mixed-method study involving 18 Android users, where we collected real-world mobile search and mobile app usage data alongside subjective insights on why certain interactions between apps and mobile search occur. Our results show that when people engage with mobile search they tend to interact with more mobile apps and for longer durations. We found that certain categories of apps are used more intensely alongside mobile search. Furthermore we found differences in app usage before and after mobile search and show how mobile app interactions can both prompt mobile search and enable users to take action. We conclude with a discussion on what these patterns mean for mobile search and how we might design mobile search experiences that take these app interactions into account.