Enhancing User Experience in Free and Open-Source Software: An Integrated Maturity Model Framework

Free and open-source software has rapidly grown and garnered considerable attention in recent years. However, the design complexities and guidelines inherent to Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) pose a challenging task in enhancing the User Experience (UX) of FOSS. Several pre-existing models have significantly contributed to the existing body of knowledge, yet they often overlook FOSS-specific attributes that establish a direct correlation with the efficiency of the UX in FOSS. To address this gap, the study proposes a FOSS UX enhancement model (FUEM) designed to align with current FOSS practices and guidelines, aiming to improve user experience in free and open-source software. The proposed model consists of six levels, with each level encompassing UX maturity influencing factors (UMXIF) identified in prior research. These factors are re-evaluated through a Likert scale questionnaire to gather feedback from developers, project managers, and UI/UX designers, as the previous study solely included the perspectives of UX experts. Our findings reveal that these factors positively impact FOSS projects, and integrating them into FUEM will enable the FOSS community to ascertain their level of UX maturity and identify which missing UMXIF they must adopt to progress to the next stage of UX maturity in FUEM. Furthermore, the tailored model developed for FOSS is validated through feedback analysis of expert reviews and quantitative analysis employing a one-way ANOVA test. The ANOVA test indicates that the p-value exceeds the significant threshold of. 05, suggesting that the FOSS UX model can considerably enhance UX in FOSS projects by providing a structured pathway for improving UX maturity, serving as a valuable resource for the FOSS community, guiding the development of more user-centric open-source software, and fostering a deeper understanding of UX maturity practices explicitly tailored for FOSS environments.