Title
Providing Direct Answers in Search Results: A Study of User Behavior
Abstract
To study the impact of providing direct answers in search results on user behavior, we conducted a controlled user study to analyze factors including reading time, eye-tracked attention, and the influence of the quality of answer module content. We also studied a more advanced answer interface, where multiple answers are shown on the search engine results page (SERP). Our results show that users focus more extensively than normal on the top items in the result list when answers are provided. The existence of the answer module helps to improve user engagement on SERPs, reduces user effort, and promotes user satisfaction during the search process. Furthermore, we investigate how the question type -- factoid or non-factoid -- affects user interaction patterns. This work provides insight into the design of SERPs that includes direct answers to queries, including when answers should be shown.
Year
DOI
Venue
2020
10.1145/3340531.3412017
CIKM '20: The 29th ACM International Conference on Information and Knowledge Management Virtual Event Ireland October, 2020
DocType
ISBN
Citations 
Conference
978-1-4503-6859-9
0
PageRank 
References 
Authors
0.34
27
5
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Zhijing Wu1254.15
Mark Sanderson23751341.56
B. Barla Cambazoglu301.69
W. Bruce Croft4178122796.94
Falk Scholer5124493.27