Users’ Perception and Evaluation of a Search Engine Result Page

Abstract: In order to find information before an e-commerce purchase, Swedish young adults almost exclusively uses the Google search engine. Previous research contains quantitative data, which showcases how the users utilize search engines as online tools. However, qualitative data regarding the user behaviour on generic search engines were lacking and a gap in the literature was found. In order to collect empirical data to try to fill the gap, six participants were interviewed about their behaviour when using Google. The interviews aimed to discover how the user chooses one result over another at the search engine result page and why. The empirical data showed that the users used the search engine in order to obtain quick and accurate information, in the most convenient process possible. Two major factors were shown to highly contribute to the choice of a user’s perception of the search engine result page. Previous experience and the trustworthiness of a result, strongly affected if a user would choose to click on that result. As a support to both these factors, the user used the technical components: title, URL and snippet. We believe that our findings will contribute to a deeper understanding within search engine user behaviour.