Italian adaptation of the System Usability and Acceptance Model scale: application to MatriKS a new digital test for fluid intelligence assessment

The perceived ease of use and attitude towards new technologies are particularly relevant for the effectiveness and implementation of new digital neuropsychological tests. Nevertheless, to date there are no instruments specifically targeted for developmental age that encompass both the features of usability and acceptability. The present work aims to describe the psychometrics properties of the Usability and Attitude Scale (UAS), an Italian adaptation of the System Usability Scale (SUS; Brooke,1995) and Technology Acceptance Model Scale (TAM; Venkatesh & Bala, 2008; Davis, 1989). Furthermore, the study aimed at assessing the usability and attitude of MatriKS, a new computerized test for the evaluation of fluid intelligence. The UAS was administered to a sample of 1,239 participants aged 4 to 70 (47% males and 53% females, M=19.43, SD=16.86) of the general population. All participants completed different versions of MatriKS according to their age and then completed the UAS. Overall, UAS showed good content validity and internal consistency. Moreover, the results obtained using the Curved Grading Scale Method (CGS; Sauro & Lewis, 2012;2016), confirmed the positive reception of MatriKS, indicating that test-takers perceived the assessment as a positive experience. Specifically, the usability resulted “excellent” for the version tailored to the younger population, while the usability score of the other version resulted between “sufficient” and “good”. Concerning the acceptability perceived by participants, the results obtained with the CGS method, confirm positive ratings like those found for usability. In conclusion, the UAS showed good psychometric properties and feedback provided by test-takers suggest that the MatriKS is promising and deserves further research.