About the Usability BoK
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the UPA's Usability BoK?
The UPA's Usability "BoK" is an acronym for the Usability Professionals' Association "Body of Knowledge" (BoK) project. A Body of Knowledge is an authoritative guide to the generally accepted knowledge needed in order to practice in that field. It provides a framework as well as ongoing learning resources for both experienced and inexperienced practitioners. A BoK also provides information about the scope of the field to people external to it.
How can I help?
The Usability BoK project can only be successful with contributions from recognized experts in the field. If you are an expert in any aspect of the User Experience field, we would love to have your involvement in the project. Sign up by e-mailing us at bok@usabilityprofessionals.org or complete the online volunteer form on the Usability BoK preview site.
Even if you do not feel qualified to author material, we welcome your assistance in other areas such as copy editing, web site updating and reviewing links to online reference materials. Please see the volunteer page for more information.
If you are using a wiki for the Usability BoK, why aren't you using Wikipedia?
In order to ensure quality, a strict peer-review process is followed for topic contributions and our wiki supports this workflow. Once a topic has been released to the public Usability BoK site, anyone is welcome use this information to create or update a Wikipedia entry.
Why do I need a login to the wiki?
Given the importance of the peer-reviewed process, a login helps to ensure quality by tracking and managing edits. It also allows you, as a contributor, to collaborate with other usability professionals in a private drafting environment and develop content in safe environment before going live to the public.
What happened to the topic I contributed some time ago?
At some points in the past, the volunteer-only Usability BoK project has struggled to maintain momentum. We apologize if a topic you have previously contributed has not progressed. Please e-mail us at bok@usabilityprofessionals.org to find out the status of a contribution.
Isn't this project duplicating some existing source of knowledge?
Based on a 2006 UPA survey, there is no definitive or authoritative resource cited by User Experience practitioners. The need for an authoritative resource that serves this purpose has been as an important driver for the project.
Is the Usability BoK project trying to create "pointers" to other sources of knowledge, or author a single "document" that contains all of that knowledge?
The priority is to create a comprehensive list of short entries on all generally accepted topics. Inside of each of these topics are pointers to other references which go into more depth.
We will gradually develop more detailed summaries of these topics where there is no existing authoritative reference or where clarifying alternative approaches to a method provides valuable information.
How long does it normally take to create a successful and effective body of knowledge?
Other successful BoK projects in rapidly developing fields (such as Software Engineering) have taken roughly 6-10 years to reach their initial version. This is affected by the level of volunteer involvement, management of the peer review process, and the time required to map out the topics which make up the profession. Usability professionals have wide-ranging skills, so "defining" the profession is no small task.
How can you tell when/if the BoK is done?
Given the evolving nature of the field this Usability BoK project is planned to be ongoing, however the goal is to have a substantial number of publicly available topics published through 2009 and 2010.
What is the UPA BoK's relation to other User Experience projects, certifications and web sites?
Given the interdisciplinary nature of UX work, the goal of the project is to create an open and collaborative source of knowledge managed in a not-for-profit fashion. Other reference and certification projects are actively being developed or considered by other associations and organizations, and the Usability BoK team is discussing collaborations and shared contributions with related disciplines. We welcome collaboration.
Will the UPA BoK be used to create a certification?
Certification of User Experience professionals has been a contentious topic for our field and has caused many discussions and research surveys over the years. One potential function of the Usability BoK might be to provide source material for a future certification initiative.
