Comparing Design Preference of Guide Road Signs by Native Arabic Speakers and International Speakers in the State of Qatar

Abstract

Guide road signs are used to help drivers. These signs should be designed properly and provided effectively to maximize the transmitted information in a short time in driving. The design of guide road signs should be made carefully when multi-languages are used, which is the case of Qatar. To compare the preference of a guide road sign design between different language speakers, an online survey was conducted. Participants rated a design using a 7-Likert scale. They preferred road signs having a background of different colors and a vertical text layout. A group t-test was conducted for comparisons between native Arabic speakers and international speakers whose native language is not Arabic. The results showed that there is no significant difference between the two groups. Based on the result, the proposed design can be effectively used for all drivers regardless of their native language in Qatar.