Interaction Design

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Interaction Design

Introduction to Contextual Introduction to Contextual ResearchResearch

Interaction Design

Human Centred DesignHuman Centred Design

• Involves using information about users and their tasks to inform design

• Studying people in the context in which the new software will work reveals a lot of insights other techniques do not

• In addition to studying users, HCD techniques may also involve users in the design process

Interaction Design

Why Involve Users?Why Involve Users?

• Expectation Management– Ensure realistic expectations on the part of the

user– Ensures there are no surprises when the

software is delivered– Important when a new system is being

introduced that changes existing work practices

• Ownership– Feel they have a stake in the product which may

help with acceptance.

Interaction Design

Studying ContextStudying Context

• People use technologies to perform activities or tasks in specific contexts.

• To design usable and useful interactive systems we need to understand the variability in People, Tasks, Technology and Contexts.

Interaction Design

PeoplePeople• Individuals differ on a number of dimensions some

of which are important for interaction design.

– Variation in senses; e.g. colour blindness– Cognitive Ability; e.g. memory and attention span– Domain Expertise; e.g. novice and expert users– Frequency in use of computers – primary, secondary

and tertiary users– Age– Culture– Physical abilities and disabilities

Interaction Design

TasksTasks

• The nature or characteristics of the activities to be performed with the system– Temporal: task frequency, time pressures,

interruptions.– Cooperation: carried out alone or with others?– Complexity: vague or well defined?

Interaction Design

TechnologiesTechnologies

• Input devices– How people enter data and instructions to the system

• Output devices– Characteristics of different displays

• Communication– Between people and devices needs to be considered

• Content– Concerns the data in the system and the form it takes.

Interaction Design

ContextsContexts

• Physical Environment– Where the activity takes place, e.g. on the move

• Social Context– Social norms affect the acceptability of designs

• Organisational Context– The specific work context, e.g. large

multinational, health service, SME.

Interaction Design

ActivityActivity

Group A

• A small multimedia start-up company

Group B

• An insurance company call centre

What contextual factors might you consider in designing a customer database for the following clients?

Interaction Design

Researching the Context of Researching the Context of UseUse

• Ethnographic methods– Observation, interviews etc– Explicit design methods

• Contextual Design (Holtzblatt and Beyer 2000)– Practical design method the focuses on

uncovering how people work so that new software meets their needs and supports their key activities.

Interaction Design

Contextual DesignContextual Design• A method for the design of generic

products

• Keeps data focus on the client

• Supports the collection of contextual data and the distillation of common elements

• Intended to be used by a team

• Not really suitable for small projects or individual projects

Interaction Design

The Role of a Contextual The Role of a Contextual DesignerDesigner

• To make sense of real life situations– Identify stakeholders and their attributes– Model the usage environments

• To uncover Implicit knowledge– Identify activities and critical success factors

• To design a system that matches its users’ needs

Interaction Design

Contextual Design ProcessContextual Design Process

Contextual Interview

Interpretation & Work Modelling

Flow Cultural

Sequence

PhysicalArtefact

Affinity Notes

Consolidation and Affinity Diagram

VisioningStoryboarding

User Environment Design

Interaction Design

Contextual InterviewContextual Interview

• Focused interview and Observations– Observe how work is actually undertaken– Retrospective explanations (e.g. I noticed you

checking the delivery address against bill address why was that?

– Master-apprentice model– Two or three people in each work role should be

interviewed

Interaction Design

Key PrinciplesKey Principles

• Understand user needs in the context of their work

• Work with users as partners

• Create a shared understanding of what is going on by interpretations with the user.

• Probe for information from a clearly defined focus

Interaction Design

SummarySummary

• Involving and understanding users and their needs:– Leads to more appropriate software– Helps manage user expectations– Gives a sense of ownership and aids acceptance

• Contextual Design method provides models and techniques for gathering contextual data and representing this in a form to assist design