A Novel UX-Based Approach for Ontology Evaluation: Applying Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology

This paper introduces a novel approach to evaluating ontologies by integrating user experience (UX) metrics, specifically the Tree Testing protocol, into the validation process. Traditional ontology validation often focuses on verifying competency questions via SPARQL queries, overlooking the critic...

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Main Authors: Filipi Miranda Soares, Antonio Mauro Saraiva, Luis Ferreira Pires, Debora Pignatari Drucker, Kelly Rosa Braghetto, Luiz Olavo Bonino da Silva Santos, Dilvan de Abreu Moreira, Fernando Elias Correa, Alexandre Claudio Botazzo Delbem
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IEEE 2025-01-01
Series:IEEE Access
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Online Access:https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11108173/
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author Filipi Miranda Soares
Antonio Mauro Saraiva
Luis Ferreira Pires
Debora Pignatari Drucker
Kelly Rosa Braghetto
Luiz Olavo Bonino da Silva Santos
Dilvan de Abreu Moreira
Fernando Elias Correa
Alexandre Claudio Botazzo Delbem
author_facet Filipi Miranda Soares
Antonio Mauro Saraiva
Luis Ferreira Pires
Debora Pignatari Drucker
Kelly Rosa Braghetto
Luiz Olavo Bonino da Silva Santos
Dilvan de Abreu Moreira
Fernando Elias Correa
Alexandre Claudio Botazzo Delbem
author_sort Filipi Miranda Soares
collection DOAJ
description This paper introduces a novel approach to evaluating ontologies by integrating user experience (UX) metrics, specifically the Tree Testing protocol, into the validation process. Traditional ontology validation often focuses on verifying competency questions via SPARQL queries, overlooking the critical role of domain specialists in assessing usability and conceptual alignment. To address this gap, we applied Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology (APTO), tracking specialists’ navigation paths as they completed 11 domain-specific tasks. This method provided actionable insights into APTO’s usability, revealing structural weaknesses and areas needing refinement. The study involved experts in ontological modeling within the agricultural domain, ensuring feedback was relevant and domain-specific. The findings underscore the value of UX metrics, such as Tree Testing, in identifying user navigation patterns and conceptual misunderstandings. This research illustrates the importance of integrating UX-driven methodologies into ontology design to foster more user-centered and practical knowledge representations for real-world applications. By bridging the gap between technical validation and user-centered evaluation, this work contributes to developing ontologies that are not only technically sound but also intuitive and aligned with the needs of domain experts.
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publishDate 2025-01-01
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spelling doaj-art-d108cb6c2dd14925838fcefc66e7834b2025-08-20T03:03:53ZengIEEEIEEE Access2169-35362025-01-011313798613800410.1109/ACCESS.2025.359544711108173A Novel UX-Based Approach for Ontology Evaluation: Applying Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types OntologyFilipi Miranda Soares0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0674-7960Antonio Mauro Saraiva1Luis Ferreira Pires2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7432-7653Debora Pignatari Drucker3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4177-1322Kelly Rosa Braghetto4https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6218-6849Luiz Olavo Bonino da Silva Santos5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1164-1351Dilvan de Abreu Moreira6Fernando Elias Correa7Alexandre Claudio Botazzo Delbem8https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1810-1742Polytechnic School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilPolytechnic School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilFaculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Twente, Enschede, Overijssel, The NetherlandsCenter for Artificial Intelligence (C4AI), University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilCenter for Artificial Intelligence (C4AI), University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilFaculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Twente, Enschede, Overijssel, The NetherlandsCenter for Artificial Intelligence (C4AI), University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilCenter for Artificial Intelligence (C4AI), University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilCenter for Artificial Intelligence (C4AI), University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilThis paper introduces a novel approach to evaluating ontologies by integrating user experience (UX) metrics, specifically the Tree Testing protocol, into the validation process. Traditional ontology validation often focuses on verifying competency questions via SPARQL queries, overlooking the critical role of domain specialists in assessing usability and conceptual alignment. To address this gap, we applied Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology (APTO), tracking specialists’ navigation paths as they completed 11 domain-specific tasks. This method provided actionable insights into APTO’s usability, revealing structural weaknesses and areas needing refinement. The study involved experts in ontological modeling within the agricultural domain, ensuring feedback was relevant and domain-specific. The findings underscore the value of UX metrics, such as Tree Testing, in identifying user navigation patterns and conceptual misunderstandings. This research illustrates the importance of integrating UX-driven methodologies into ontology design to foster more user-centered and practical knowledge representations for real-world applications. By bridging the gap between technical validation and user-centered evaluation, this work contributes to developing ontologies that are not only technically sound but also intuitive and aligned with the needs of domain experts.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11108173/Ontologyusabilityuser experience (UX)validationevaluation
spellingShingle Filipi Miranda Soares
Antonio Mauro Saraiva
Luis Ferreira Pires
Debora Pignatari Drucker
Kelly Rosa Braghetto
Luiz Olavo Bonino da Silva Santos
Dilvan de Abreu Moreira
Fernando Elias Correa
Alexandre Claudio Botazzo Delbem
A Novel UX-Based Approach for Ontology Evaluation: Applying Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology
IEEE Access
Ontology
usability
user experience (UX)
validation
evaluation
title A Novel UX-Based Approach for Ontology Evaluation: Applying Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology
title_full A Novel UX-Based Approach for Ontology Evaluation: Applying Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology
title_fullStr A Novel UX-Based Approach for Ontology Evaluation: Applying Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology
title_full_unstemmed A Novel UX-Based Approach for Ontology Evaluation: Applying Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology
title_short A Novel UX-Based Approach for Ontology Evaluation: Applying Tree Testing to the Agricultural Product Types Ontology
title_sort novel ux based approach for ontology evaluation applying tree testing to the agricultural product types ontology
topic Ontology
usability
user experience (UX)
validation
evaluation
url https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11108173/
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