Usability Engineering

A systematic, structured approach to designing and evaluating user interfaces that applies engineering principles to usability. Usability engineering involves defining measurable usability goals, conducting user analysis, iterative prototyping, and empirical testing with representative users. In the context of accessibility, usability engineering methods must be adapted to account for the diverse and dynamic capabilities of users with disabilities, as standard techniques that assume homogeneous user groups may miss critical barriers experienced by people with varying impairments. The field has evolved to incorporate inclusive and universal design principles that extend usability goals beyond efficiency to encompass equity and access.