08292 Abstracts Collection -- The Study of Visual Aesthetics in Human-Computer Interaction

From 13.07. to 16.07.2008, the Dagstuhl Seminar 08292 ``The Study of Visual Aesthetics in Human-Computer Interaction\u27\u27 was held in the International Conference and Research Center (IBFI), Schloss Dagstuhl. During the seminar, several participants presented their current research, and ongoing work and open problems were discussed. Abstracts of the presentations given during the seminar as well as abstracts of seminar results and ideas are put together in this paper. The first section describes the seminar topics and goals in general. Links to extended abstracts or full papers are provided, if available

Impact of External Representation and Task on Graph Comprehension

This study examined the relationship between the external representation, verbal encoding vs. visual encoding, of graph information and the impact on graph comprehension. Graph comprehension tasks included responses to true/false statements addressing global and local graph information, visual recognition, and graph drawing. The findings suggest that the specific modality of the external representation play a role in the encoding and retrieval of some aspects of global vs. local graph information. The findings are discussed with reference to theories of spatial cognition

Interpreting human and avatar facial expressions

Abstract. This paper investigates the impact of contradictory emotional content on people's ability to identify the emotion expressed on avatar faces as compared to human faces. Participants saw emotional faces (human or avatar) coupled with emotional texts. The face and text could either display the same or different emotions. Participants were asked to identify the emotion on the face and in the text. While they correctly identified the emotion on human faces more often than on avatar faces, this difference was mostly due to the neutral avatar face. People were no better at identifying a facial expression when emotional information coming from two sources was the same than when it was different, regardless of whether the facial expression was displayed on a human face or on an avatar face. Finally, people were more sensitive to context when trying to identify the emotion in the accompanying text

The Design and Evaluation of DACADE Visual Tool: Theoretical Implications

A goal of every designer is to create successful products for consumers. In creating a successful product, it is crucial for a designer to understand consumers’ perceptions of a product early in the design process. Nevertheless, design students lack the necessary data collection and user testing skills to support effective design decision-making. Consequently, their products might not be acceptable to the intended consumers and are thus likely to fail in the marketplace. For design students to acquire those skills, design curricula should incorporate statistical courses teaching the concepts of data and user testing. We addressed this challenge by developing an automated visual tool named DACADE, assisting design students to systematically collect and analyze data. This paper reports the theoretical implications discovered during the process from designing through to implementing and evaluating DACADE concerning the transfer of learning, the appropriateness of graphics used in a software tool, and user motivation in a learning environment

Online health communities

Abstract Online health communities provide a means for patients and their families to learn about an illness, seek and offer support, and connect with others in similar circumstances. They are supported by a variety of technologies (e.g., email lists, forums, chat rooms) and are hosted by patients, advocacy groups, medical organizations, and corporations. They raise difficult design challenges because of the wide variability of members' medical expertise, the severity of problems due to misinformation, and the need for emotional support. The importance of on-line health communities is evidenced by their popularity, as well as the significant impact they have on the lives of their members. This Special Interest Group (SIG) will explore current trends in online health communities, as well as discuss the socio-technical design challenges and opportunities that they afford

Human factors in telecommunications research

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Introducing HCI into an organization: making a convincing case for usability

The influence of a usability team in a particular organization and its products depends partly on the organizational structure and culture and partly on the skill set in the usability team itself. Once management decides to embrace usability, the integration of a usability team should therefore be considered very carefully in light of the existing organizational structure and culture [1,5] without, of course, neglecting consideration of the skills required to ensure the long-term benefits of usability to the organization’s products