Expert or Heuristic Evaluations

Expert evaluations involve a review of a product or system, usually by a usability specialist or human factors specialist who has little or no involvement in the project. The specialist performs his or her review according to accepted usability principles (heuristics) from the body of research, human factors literature, and previous professional experience. The viewpoint is that of the specific target population that will use the product.

A "double" specialist, that is, someone who is an expert in usability principles or human factors as well as an expert in the domain area (such as healthcare, financial services, and so on, depending on the application), or in the particular technology employed by the product, can be more effective than one without such knowledge.