Card Sorting

by Donna Spencer

Card sorting helps us understand how people think about content and categories. Armed with this knowledge, we can group information so that people can better find and understand it. In this book, Donna describes how to plan and run a card sort, then analyse the results and apply the outcomes to your project.

Genres: Design, Nonfiction, Usability, Research, Web, Business, Website Design

162 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Nathanael Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spencer effectively details many of the key concepts related to care sorting, but her explanations and case studies are often limited to referring back to impractical examples. The frequent references to website planning for the Information Architecture conference as an example would be more useful if readers were given a more concrete explanation of the entire context. This book is a great resource as a jumping off point into Information Architecture, as Spencer gives succinct and insightful summaries of ancillary concepts related to Card Sorting. References to other sources are informative and direct, Spencer summarizes what can be learned from other writers and provides references to find those books. Her explanation of the Classical View of Categorization was particularly enlightening.

[Saji Maruthurkkara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Card sorting Book by Donna Spencer
Rating 4
(1=Bad, 2=Ok won’t recommend, 3=OK time pass, 4=Good, 5=Very good don’t miss)
Where to Read/Listen: Amazon

Good UX (User experience) is like “air”, we don’t notice it when it is good but we can’t get anything done well when it is bad.
UX designers are some of the loveliest people to work with, because they love working with people. I have never ever come across a grumpy / difficult to work with / pain in * UX engineer.
A book on UX by an eminent UXer has to be good. This is book is for three kinds of people. 1) anyone who has heard about UX but don’t know much, as it gives a good overview of what UX involves. 2) It’s for for people who think they know about UX (people like me) but don’t know how much there is to know, as it has some very nice insights. And Finally for expert UXrs as it goes into a lot of practical points. But if you haven’t ever heard of the term UX, move on it’s not for you.

[Mórocz Ágnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great introduction and a comprehensive guide to card sorting. It is very well-written and easy to read. I found this book super useful for my preparation.

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most sophisticated book on card sorting/tree testing method. Many dos and don'ts, best practices how to pick and conduct, particularly the scientific analytic part, which are sort of foreign for many research teams. It helps me recently better planning our card sorting research.

[Aaron Byers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very specific to the topic but part of a very useful series regarding data collection, organization, and application for development and UXD.

[Loucaspapa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good introduction into card-sorting, very practical with very useful excel files on the site for conducting your research and later analysing the results. A handbook for anyone that hands to conduct card-sorting with/for clients.

[Michele Ide-smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only comprehensive guide to card sorting I know of. This book is easy to read but informative and based on Donna Spencer's years of practical experience and insights from using and refining the technique. I found it extremely useful when preparing a workshop to teach card sorting to librarians.

[Dave Emmett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book for information architects and others involved in organizing information. I had done a few card sorts before, but learned a ton from this book about how to do them better.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent overview and guide to a key tool for information architects. Add the fifth star if you're working on a site with a large volume of complicated and difficult-to-categorize material.

[Alexandria Harbin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice introduction to card sorting with some real-world case studies.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was excellent. I feel prepared to run a card sort now, with the ability to anticipate problems and issues as they arise.

[Joey Heflich · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good primer.

[Esther Angulo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Manual very useful for people who has never conducted a card sorting or to solve some doubts.

[Ryber Torbjörn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and informative

I really like the practitioner approach. Very useful information and tips. Some case stories are a bit vague and do not really add value.

[Supriya Raghavendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well structured, concise and practical book to get familiar with card-sorting. Time well spent!