This research aims to explore how individuals use UGC for self-guided learning. The focus is on understanding how users find, select, and trust content, and how it aids their learning process.
Context
User-Generated Content (UGC) in self-guided learning refers to materials such as blog posts, videos, and social media posts created by users rather than professionals. This content supports learning by offering diverse, relatable, and current resources, allowing learners to explore subjects at their own pace and share their knowledge, enhancing personal and community learning experiences.
Details
Time Frame:
2 week
Role:
UX Researcher
Tools:
Figma, Miro, User Testing
Responsibilities:
Data Collection, User Interviews, Surveys, Diary Study Management, Eye Tracking Analysis, Data Analysis, Insight Synthesis, Report Writing, Literature Review, Ethical Oversight
Objective
- Understand how learners search for UGC while learning on their own.
- Identify what makes UGC valuable or
trustworthyto these learners. - Learn how learners evaluate and
choose useful contentfrom the vast amount of UGC available online. - Explore how UGC affects the overall self-learning experience.
Challenge
I anticipated several challenges: ensuring a diverse participant sample to generalize findings effectively, analyzing qualitative data from diaries and interviews to identify consistent themes, and addressing privacy concerns during data collection, particularly in diary studies.
Goal
Investigate how UGC impacts learners' confidence levels and their self-assessment of mastery (beginner, intermediate, expert)
Hypothesis
After engaging with UGC, learners will assess their level of mastery as beginner, intermediate, or expert based on how confident they feel about the subject.
Secondary Research
My intent was to establish a foundational understanding of how user-generated content (UGC) is currently utilized in self-guided learning. By conducting a thorough literature review, I aimed to map the existing landscape of UGC, identifying prevalent usage trends and the effectiveness of various content types in educational contexts.
This phase was crucial for setting the context for primary research by highlighting areas lacking in-depth study.
Primary Research
It focused on directly observing and gathering data from users to understand their interactions with UGC in a real-world setting. Methods such as surveys, diary studies, and eye tracking were employed to collect empirical evidence on how learners search for, select, and trust UGC.
The goal was to obtain actionable insights that could inform better content creation and curation strategies, enhancing the overall efficacy of UGC in self-learning environments. Analysis
The analysis phase aimed to synthesize insights from both secondary and primary research, using graphical presentations to visually articulate the data. The objective was to clearly demonstrate patterns and trends in UGC usage, providing a narrative about its role and impact in self-guided learning.
This stage was designed to transformraw data into understandable and applicable knowledge, supporting informed decision-making for stakeholders involved in educational content development. 
beginner or intermediate level of mastery quickly, but achieving an expert level often requires deeper, structured learning beyond UGC. Confidence depends on content clarity, format, and prior knowledge of the topic. Reflection and learnings
Decision Making Factors
Title and Keywords, Source of Content, Visuals (Images and Thumbnails) and Time to Process Data
Search Behavior
Used keywords and for articles: Title, summary, images, and edited date. For videos: Time (length of video), thumbnails, and title relevance.
Challenges Faced
Keyword Errors, Content Mismatch and Distraction with Overconsumption