Friday 30 January 2009

Cognitive Modelling: Norman's 'Designer's Model'


Currently I am reading About Face 3 (Cooper et al.). In chapter 2 it deals with the existing position, dictated by software, of humans having to understand how computers 'logically' behave. Interaction design aims to rebalance digital products in favour of the human rather than the machine. By facilitating clearer cognitive behavioural understanding in the user, interactions can be made more beneficial to the user. Where this chapter really begins to become useful is in its explanation of conceptual models in order to visualise how humans and computers work.

The first model Donald Norman refers to as the system model. This is the cognitive model that explains the processing structure of the code. About Face 3 prefers to refer to it as the implementation model.

How code processes its actions and how human beings believe a computer/device/machine works are not the same. The human's mental model of how it works can be simplistic, counter-intuitive, fanciful, inaccurate, illogical; but as long as it helps the human successfully use their computer/device/machine it doesn't matter to them. Where a lot of problems arise within interactivity is the chasm that can form because these two mental models are representationally different. One is a mapping of actual processes - 'implementation', the other is purely notional - 'explanation'.

To interface between 'implementation' and 'explanation' a third model arises, a model that Donald Norman refers to as the designer's model, and Cooper et al refers to as a represented model. A designer's model that maps closer to a system/implementation model maybe more 'accurate' to the actual mechanics of processing, but is cognitively problematic to human users [A in diagram].

A successful interface is one where a user can see how their "goals and needs can be met" (Cooper et al, 2007, p32). This is achieved through making the designer's model follow as closely as possible the users' perceptions of how they believe they access the content [C in diagram].

There is nothing ground-breaking here in regard to interaction design, but it is the first time I have come across these definitions. I have known of the butler metaphor (Isaacs & Walendowski, 2002) but Cooper and Norman's models give it a more theoretical depth. Below is an expansion of the diagram in About Face 3 on page 30, with my annotations that link it back to my recent paper on the location of the graphic designer in GUI design.



Norman's designer's model and Cooper et al's similar represented model helps to give a cognitive psychological and theoretical base to the role that underpins the work of interface designers. In my paper I wrote about and cited Gillian Crampton Smith, former school director of Interaction Design Institute Ivrea. She sees the "graphic designers’ role as more involved in the interactive design process 'designing what a package is and what it does, and then designing what it will be like' (Aymer, 2001a, p33)". Graphic designers as part of their practice alternate between the “consideration of objective information and intuitive leaps” (Frascara, 2006, p32) in order to arrive at successful visual solutions. Graphic design, when performed well, can “inspire a behavourial change” in its audiences (Forlizzi & Lebbon, 2006, p53). These three points I raised and discussed in my paper can now also be assessed within the framework of the designer's model, and how effective are visual solutions when measured against the user's mental models.


References:

AYMER, G. (2001)a Norman Cooking. Create Online. 8. p38-40

COOPER, A., REIMAN, R. and CRONIN, D. (2007) About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design. Indianapolis: Wiley Publishing Inc.

FRASCARA, J. (2006) Graphic Design: Fine Art or Social Science. In: A. BENNETT, ed. Design Studies: Theory and Research in Graphic Design - A Reader. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, p26-35

FORLIZZI, J. and LEBBON, C. (2006) From Formalism to Social Significance in Communication Design. In: A. BENNETT, ed. Design Studies: Theory and Research in Graphic Design - A Reader. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, p51-63

ISAACS, E. & WALENDOWSKI, A. (2002)Designing from Both Sides of the Screen: How Designers and Engineers Can Collaborate to Build Cooperative Technology. New Riders Publishing

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Friday 23 January 2009

Current update on research position


Following the completion of my first paper demonstrating the development of my research I thought I'd best keep sight of where my research position currently stands. Below is a diagram I have produced, based upon a diagram explaining user experience, that I believe locates my bibliographic sources to date. The original diagram is from About Face 3 by Alan Cooper et al.*

The Diagram
The diagram below has been adapted and annotated to place additional information upon it that supports the locating of my current references. These locations are relative, emblematic and arbitrary, serving only to spatially identify where I believe my literature review is concentrated. I am initially weighting it from the visual communication perspective, but in order to balance it I have dialectically balanced it with sources from computer science (sources 10 & 19) and interaction design (sources 16, 17 & 25) literature. The numbering relates directly to the bibliography of 28 sources I used for the paper. The bibliography follows. In the next phase of research I am moving my position more towards the interaction sphere of literature from visual communication.



The Current Bibliography
1. AYMER, G. (2001)a Norman Cooking. Create Online. 8. p38-40

2. AYMER, G. (2001)b Interaction Guaranteed. Create Online. 10. p32-33

3. AYMER, G. (2002) The Big IDEO. Create Online. 29. p48-51

4. BRUINSMA, M. and VAN DER MEULEN, S. (2003) Deep Sites: Intelligent Innovation in Contemporary Web Design. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd

5. BURGOYNE, P. (2002) GB: Graphic Britain. London: Laurence King Publishing

6. CROWLEY, D. (2004) Design Magazines and Design Culture. In: R. POYNOR, ed. Communicate: Independent British Graphic Design since the Sixties. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd., pp182-199

7. FRASCARA, J. (2006) Graphic Design: Fine Art or Social Science. In: A. BENNETT, ed. Design Studies: Theory and Research in Graphic Design - A Reader. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, p26-35

8. FORLIZZI, J. and LEBBON, C. (2006) From Formalism to Social Significance in Communication Design. In: A. BENNETT, ed. Design Studies: Theory and Research in Graphic Design - A Reader. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, p51-63

9. HELLER, S. (2006) Better Skills Through Better Research. In: A. BENNETT, ed. Design Studies: Theory and Research in Graphic Design - A Reader. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, p10-13

10. JOHNSON, J., ROBERTS, T.L., VERPLANK, W., SMITH, D.C., IRBY, C., BEARD, M. AND MACKEY, K. (1989) The Xerox "Star": A Retrospective. [online] (accessed on the World Wide Web 4/1/2009 http://www.digibarn.com/friends/curbow/star/retrospect/)

11. LAUREL, B. ed (2003) Design Research: Methods and Perspectives. London: MIT Press

12. MACDONALD, N. (2003) What is Web Design?. Hove: RotoVision SA

13. MACDONALD, N. (2004)a British Web Design: A Brief History. In: R. POYNOR, ed. Communicate: Independent British Graphic Design since the Sixties. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd., pp200-215

14. MACDONALD, N. (2004)b The British Evasion: How they missed the boat in yet another revolution led by the Americans. Print. 58(6) p38, 332

15. MACDONALD, N. (2004)c In With the New. Creative Review. 24(9) pp49-50, 52

16. MOGGRIDGE, B. (2007) Designing Interactions. MIT Press

17. NORMAN, D.A. (1998) The Design of Everyday Things. MIT Press

18. O’REILLY, J. (2004) Thinking with Images. In: R. POYNOR, ed. Communicate: Independent British Graphic Design since the Sixties. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd., pp216-231

19. PERRY, T.S. and VOELCKER, J. eds. (1989) Of mice and menus: Designing the user-friendly interface. Reprinted from IEEE Spectrum, September 1989, pp. 46-51. [online] (accessed from the World Wide Web 30/12/08 http://www.guidebookgallery.org/articles/ofmiceandmenus)

20. POYNOR, R. (1999) Made in Britain: The Ambiguous Image. In N. BARLEY et al. Lost and Found: Critical Voices in New British Design. London: Birkhauser Verlag AG/The British Council. Pp 28-31

21. POYNOR, R. ed. (2003) No More Rules: Graphic Design and Postmodernism. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd.

22. POYNOR, R. (2004) Spirit of Independence. In: R. POYNOR, ed. Communicate: Independent British Graphic Design since the Sixties. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd., pp.12-47

23. ROACH, G. (2002). More Than Words. Create Online. 27, July. pp48-51

24. ROCK, M. and POYNOR, R. (1995) What Is This Thing Called Graphic Design Criticism? Eye. 4 (16) pp56-59

25. SAFFER, D. (2007) Designing for Interaction: Creating Smart Applications and Clever Devices. Berkley, CA: New Riders

26. TOGNAZZINI, B. (1998) The Sorry State of Web Design. [online] (accessed on the World Wide Web 2/1/2009 http://www.asktog.com/columns/015WebDesignRant.html)

27. TOGNAZZINI, B. (2000) Elephants in the Living Room: The Destructive Role of Denial in Web Design. [online] (accessed on the World Wide Web 2/1/2009 http://www.asktog.com/columns/039Elephant.html)

28. TOGNAZZINI, B. (2003) It's Time We Got Respect. [online] (accessed on the World Wide Web 2/1/2009 http://www.asktog.com/columns/057ItsTimeWeGotRespect.html)



*Cooper, A., Reiman, R. and Cronin, D. (2007) About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design. Indianapolis: Wiley Publishing Inc. p xxxi
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Monday 12 January 2009

Where’s the graphic designer in the graphical user interface?

It's been a while since I last posted as I had a paper to research and write. The paper "Where’s the graphic designer in the graphical user interface?" informs my contextual review and the findings within it aid the positioning of myself within interaction design research from a visual communication perspective.

I will only give a summary here and briefly outline my intention for its use.

The paper charts the involvement of graphic designers within the development of graphical user interfaces (GUI) across software and online/offline digital products since the 1970s. This is in order to discover what influence and involvement graphic design, as a discipline, now bears upon interaction design. The paper is limited to 3,000 words and so does not go into the history of GUI development.
The paper can be downloaded here as a pdf.

To support the paper I wish to add here some images that were useful to my research. The paper is intentionally unillustrated as, although it is about a visual medium, I wished the text to position the past, current and future state of graphic designers' involvement before I then move the research onto actual practioners. Therefore the images I am posting below are the starting point for the next paper I propose upon this research. This will then form the first part of my contextual study moving deeper into interaction design literature, before exploring the other areas of the diagram in previous posts.

A History of the GUI Timeline


Jeremy Reimer
arstechnica.com/articles/paedia/gui.ars/8 | Published: May 05, 2005

Original Apple Icon Graphics
Susan Kare


Original Apple MacPaint Graphics
Susan Kare


Original Apple Typography
Susan Kare


Xerox Star GUI Icon Ideas (circa 1979)
Norm Cox


Xerox Star Final Icons (circa 1980)
Norm Cox et al