Development and Validation of Cloud Applications Usability Development Scale

Abstract

Cloud computing has revolutionized technology and education by providing scalable virtual resources accessible via the internet. This study emphasizes the importance of usability in cloud services, discussing various scales and metrics while highlighting their strengths and weaknesses. It underscores the necessity for a comprehensive usability scale that integrates both subjective and objective measures to suit diverse user scenarios and populations. The article introduces the Cloud Applications/Services Usability Development Scale, comprising five usability dimensions: Capable, Personal, Reliable, Valuable, and Secure. To validate the instrument, factor analysis was performed on 28 items for each construct, utilizing Principal Component Analysis and Varimax Rotation. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) and Bartlett’s Test were applied to assess sampling adequacy. Construct validity and reliability were scrutinized using AMOS 21, a statistical analysis software for structural equation modeling (SEM). A confirmation factor analysis was employed to assess both converging and discriminating validity. A survey conducted among actual cloud application users, specifically Google Drive users in Lahore’s public libraries, demonstrated the strong construct validity and reliability of the developed instrument. The Cloud Applications/Services Usability Development Scale proved effective in evaluating the usability of cloud-based applications. This study not only contributes valuable insights to the development and validation of usability measurement tools for cloud applications but also addresses a significant gap in local and international literature. Furthermore, it serves as a model for creating and validating measurement tools for cloud services, offering practical implications for usability testing and methodological advancements in the field of cloud computing.

Keywords:

• Scale development
• usability
• cloud computing
• cloud storage application
• validation of cloud applications
• exploratory factor analysis
• structural equation modeling
• instrument identification

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Farwa Taqi

Farwa Taqi is a Librarian, Quaid-e-Azam Library, Bagh-e-Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan and recently completed her MPhil from Institute of Information Management, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan with distinction. Her research interests include cloud and applications’ usability. Moreover, she is interested to investigate information seeking behavior and human–computer interaction.

Syeda Hina Batool

Syeda Hina Batool is Assistant Professor at the Institute of Information Management, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan. Her research interests focus on examining information literacy instruction and related literacies (health, digital, workplace, visual, media, etc.), through qualitative research lens. She is serving at various national and international forums.

Alia Arshad

Alia Arshad is Assistant Professor at the Institute of Information Management, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan. She has 21 years of professional and teaching experience in well-reputed organizations. She has research publications in esteemed journals, i.e., Journal of Information Science, The Electronic Library, Library Hi Tech, etc.