Evaluation of the Perceived Persuasiveness Questionnaire: User-Centered Card-Sort Study

Area of Science:

• Human-Computer Interaction
• Health Behavior Change
• eHealth Interventions

Background:

• eHealth technologies leverage persuasive design to influence user behavior.
• The Persuasive Systems Design (PSD) model outlines features to enhance technology persuasiveness.
• Understanding the impact of specific PSD features on intervention effectiveness requires robust measurement tools like the Perceived Persuasiveness Questionnaire (PPQ).

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the face and construct validity of the Perceived Persuasiveness Questionnaire (PPQ).
• To identify areas for improvement in the PPQ.
• To offer recommendations for the further development of the PPQ for measuring perceived persuasiveness in eHealth.

Main Methods:

• A web-based card-sort study involving 398 participants recruited from an eHealth Massive Open Online Course.
• Face validity was assessed through item-level agreement on original PPQ constructs.
• Construct validity was examined using item placement analysis and cluster analysis to evaluate inter-item correlations and cluster strength.

Main Results:

• Four PPQ constructs demonstrated high face validity: perceived social support, use continuance, perceived credibility, and perceived effort.
• Low item-level agreement was observed for other constructs, with potential for improvement through re-grouping items.
• Cluster analysis revealed varying strengths of 9 identified clusters, with only perceived credibility support, perceived social support, and use continuance remaining strong and unchanged.

Conclusions:

• The study provides a foundation for redesigning the PPQ to enhance its utility in persuasiveness research.
• A revised PPQ should align with the PSD model and end-user mental models.
• Future versions should focus on user perception of task support provision rather than specific implementation details.