Welcome to the first research rundown from the User Research Center at Harvard Library. In this quarterly newsletter, the URC will be sharing recent research that our team has conducted at Harvard Library.

If you have any questions about the research or would like to consult with our team about helping you plan or conduct research at Harvard Library please reach out to libraryux@harvard.edu.

Survey on Student Use of AI for Academic Work

This survey was conducted in Fall 2023 with 376 undergraduate (50%) and...

By Amy Deschenes

Each summer, our team hosts three interns from the University of Michigan’s School of Information (UMSI). These interns may be part of the library science or the user experience tracks of the program. The interns work as an online cohort for 35 hours a week for 10 weeks over the summer. Because of the participants’ varied backgrounds and distinct goals, we approach the internship with a “choose your own adventure” mindset. With a little bit of preparation before the interns start, we can determine the best projects for them to work on and...

By Sara Price

Even when the weather forecast is completely clear of rain, the URC team can sometimes be seen on campus carrying around boxes containing hundreds of umbrellas. This is because we set up tables at widely attended student events in order to invite signups for our participant pool. Small incentives such as umbrellas decorated with Harvard logos, handed out in exchange for completed signup forms, help us to recruit future user research study participants.  

Building A Participation Pool

Even the best survey,...

By Meg McMahon

It’s no secret that generative AI chatbots are gaining popularity. With that popularity comes questions about the accessibility of these tools. I conducted screen reader reviews on the top three chatbot AI tools on August 25, 2023. Screen readers are an assistive technology primarily used by folks who have vision impairments. They convert the text on a webpage to speech. 

I have ordered the chatbots from most accessible to least accessible by a screen reader below and have added notes on what makes each chatbot...