Chapter 6: The Use of Images

The previous chapter showed that the use of images (and the nature of those images) was one factor that impacted on the usability of digitally presented information. In fact, the use of photographs or symbols, the latter being defined as graphical images that communicate ideas (Detheridge & Detheridge, 2002) in electronic environments is both common practice and urged in the literature on usability (Bohman, 2013; Horton & Quesenbery, 2014). Apart from adorning text, photos, symbols or other pictorial representation often accompany hyperlinks, most notably in contents or menu lists. Despite this ubiquity, the use of images as aids to accessing or retrieving information has not been well researched – particularly in an electronic environment.