Ler e navegar.gov.br: experiências de interação em um portal de transparência

Abstract

We investigated interaction experiences in order to understand how the format of information presentation of the Transparency Portal of the Federal Government interferes in how readers/users read and navigate at this environment. Taking as a starting point, the contribution of some studies about reading (COSCARELLI, 2002, 2003, 2007; KLEIMAN, 1995; DELLISOLA, 2001; KOCH e ELIAS, 2008), we raised many aspects and important abilities to the task of reading. When it comes to reading in digital space, we have concluded that changes are related to the operations with the interface and not, necessarily to the abilities of the reader to understand a text (COSCARELLI, 2006; RIBEIRO, 2005, 2009). Taking this into consideration, it has become essential to us to understand the mechanism involved in navigation. So, we have searched studies referring to the multimodality, visual design composition (KRESS, 2004; KRESS e LEEUWEN, 2006) and heuristics of usability (NIELSEN, 2005) to ascertain how codes and visual elements that compose a determined content influence reading and navigation processes. We have developed interaction tests with ten subjects that read and navigated by many pages of the portal in study to solve a list of tasks. Those tasks allowed the analysis of experiences of researching and comprehension of information. From this test, we have concluded that the format of presentation of the contents of the portal interferes in reading and navigation processes depending on the selected means to the transmission of the message. In this case, the means that interfered enormously are related to the vocabulary and to the visual codes and elements (KRESS e LEEUWEN, 2006) that compose the portal and the architecture of information. Our readers/users faced a lot of difficulties and demonstrated a high level of anxiety and irritation when trying to find and comprehend the information. Based on these results, we assert that the interaction performance between readers/users and the Transparency Portal can and must be extended. As a matter of fact, the problems in reading and navigation during the tests were consequence of fails in the visual composition, arquitecture of information and kind of selected language (too technical), but also of some deficiencies in the navigation and reading abilities by part of the citizens readers/users. We have concluded that the Transparency Portal is an important instrument of political and social participation, but it is just one of the resources, it needs to pass by reformulations to reach the public to which it is directed to, it needs a government really interested in keeping a transparency relation with the population and it also needs a committed public that had developed the necessary literacies to the effective reading, navigation, fiscalization and political participation.