Understanding the connection between Persuasion and User Experience in education : A study on the Learning Management System Moodle

This thesis sets out to answer the question “How does Persuasive Technology influence the User Experience in a Learning Management System?”. The aim was to further the understanding of Persuasive Technologies (PT) within Education and better the insights in how PT affects the User Experience (UX) due to the increasing number of online students in Sweden. By using a mix-method approach the thesis focuses on understanding how the Dashboard within Linnaeus University’s Moodle environment interacts with Persuasive Technology. By combining both quantitative and qualitative methods such as the System Usability Scale (SUS), Usability Testing with Concurrent Thinking Aloud as well as Retrospective Probing Questions the aim is to better understand the effect. The study indicated that PT has the possibility to affect the User Experience both positively and negatively. The results suggest that if the adaptation of persuasive elements have not been thoroughly thought through the LMS runs a risk of being seen as unlikable and untrustworthy. This thesis’s result shows that the Persuasive Design Principles Liking and Trustworthiness are key Principles when it comes to affecting the user’s experience.