Gillenson, M. L., Sherrell, D. L., and Chen, L. 2000. "A Taxonomy of Web Site Traversal Patterns and Structures," Communications of the AIS (3:17).

As electronic commerce grows rapidly and web sites proliferate, the issue of web site design becomes increasingly important. An important aspect of web site design is the set of choices for traversing from one web site page to another and the ramifications that these choices have for establishing the overall flow patterns throughout the web site. This study establishes, for the first time, a taxonomy of web site traversal patterns and structures, which will allow the organized study of the navigational aspects of web site design. It also points out the ramifications of key structures. Finally, it describes how the use of traversal patterns and structures can achieve web sites that range from loose to tight control of the end-users’ experience in visiting the web site