We wrote The Moderator’s Survival Guide to provide a resource for other user experience researchers who have to moderate one-on-one research sessions (such as usability studies, interviews, and contextual inquiries). The book lists a number of situations that you might encounter while running a session along with experience-based tips on what to do, what to say, and how you can avoid — or be better prepared for — that situation happening in the future.
This book wasn’t designed to be read end-to-end. Instead, we hope you’ll flip through it as you’re planning your next round of user research. Consider it a guide to identify your best next steps, react appropriately, and survive any challenges that comes your way.
Check out our Table of Contents (PDF) for a full list of everything we cover!
The Authors
Donna Tedesco is a Senior User Experience Specialist with over ten years of user research experience. She has published and presented at local, national and international conferences, and is co-author with Bill Albert and Tom Tullis of the book, Beyond the Usability Lab: Conducting Large-Scale Online User Experience Studies. Donna received a BS in Engineering Psychology/Human Factors from Tufts University School of Engineering and a MS in Human Factors in Information Design from Bentley University.
Fiona Tranquada is a Senior Usability Consultant with over ten years of user research experience. She has published and presented at local and national conferences and is an active Board member for the Boston chapter of the User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA). Fiona received a BA in Professional Writing and Creative Writing from Carnegie Mellon and an MS in Human Factors in Information Design from Bentley University.
