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Hci Sheet1

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Mirna Attallah
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28 views3 pages

Hci Sheet1

Uploaded by

Mirna Attallah
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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XERCISE 1.

Devise experiments to test the properties of (i) short-term memory (ii) long term memory, using the experiments
described in this chapter to help you. Try out your experiments on your friends. Are your results consistent with the
properties described in this chapter?

answer

The aim of this exercise is to get the student to think about experimental design. The experiments devised can effectively
be repeats of the originals. Chapter 9 can be used for reference on experimental design.

(i) Short term memory (STM)

The student should first choose an aspect to investigate: for example, digit span, recency effect, decay.

Example solution: STM decay

Subjects
ideally selected to represent population, more probably undergraduate students (try to get a range of academic
subjects).
Sample size: 10+
Experiment

• split subjects into two groups. Each subject studies list of 15-20
words (could try with both nonsense words and actual words to
see any difference). Subject has to recall list either (a)
immediately or (b) after 20 second delay. Measure the number
(or percentage) of the words remembered correctly.

• A within-groups design can be used to avoid individual bias or


group variation (as long as different lists are used for each
attempt).

• independent variable -- delay in recall


dependent variable -- number correctly recalled.

• Group (b) should be given a task to do during the delay period in


order to avoid rehearsal. If possible this task should occupy a
different channel to minimise interference, e.g. a visual
recognition task.
Hypothesis
Those in (b) will perform worse than those in (a) since STM will decay.
Analysis
graphs to see decay.
T test

(ii) Long term memory (LTM)

The student should first choose an aspect to investigate: for example, the total time hypothesis or the distribution of
practice effect.

Example solution: distribution of practice effect

Subjects
as above. Should have no prior experience of the skill to be learned.
Experiment

• split subjects into 3 groups. Each subject must learn a skill (for
example shorthand or typing -- must be measurable). Group A
learns for 1 hour a week for 6 weeks. Group B learns for 2 hours
a week for 3 weeks. Group C learns for 3 hours a week for 2
weeks.

• After each group's training is complete the subjects are tested


and the number of mistakes made are noted.

• Between-groups design.

• independent variable - style of learning


dependent variable - accuracy
Hypothesis
Group A will be best (due to the distribution of practice effect)
Analysis
ANOVA

(N.B. This one is not easy to run but could be done with cooperation from friends)

EXERCISE 1.2

Observe skilled and novice operators in a familiar domain: for example, touch and 'hunt-and-peck' typists, expert and
novice game players, or expert and novice users of a computer application. What differences can you discern between their
behaviours?

answer

• This is an exercise in observation.


The student should think about skill acquisition, proceduralization, chunking, etc.

• Is there any evidence of this in practice?

• How do the groups differ (speed, error, style, strategy)?

• Do the differences suggest different skill levels?

EXERCISE 1.3

From what you have learned about cognitive psychology, devise appropriate guidelines for use by interface designers. You
may find it helpful to group these under key headings: for example, visual perception, memory, problem solving, etc,
although some may overlap such groupings.

answer
Guidelines are just what they say they are: guidelines. They provide for a consistent look and feel for an interface, as well
as trying to exclude the more obvious mistakes that can be made from a psychological perspective. However, there are
occasions when such constraints should be broken; for new interaction devices, for example, or to create a unique style of
product.

Because of this, there is no one correct answer to this question: some will be more cognitively friendly than others, that is
all. Guidelines can range from the general principle type shown below down to highly detailed information on what each
component in a display should look and behave like.

Some examples of guidelines with cognitively solid foundations are shown below - this is not an exhaustive set by any
means

• Colour: don't show details in blue. Remember certain users can confuse green and red. Remember the social
expectations of colours (e.g., in Western culture, red - stop, danger, hot; blue - cold; green - go).

• Text: don't use all capital letters in text. Use a serif font for large blocks of text. Dark characters on a light screen
are read more accurately and preferred.

• Functionality: limit the number of things to be remembered to 7, and preferably to 5. Group things according to
function.

• Problem solving: use analogy and metaphor to aid learning and performance.

This exercise should encourage students to look into the literature on human factors, cognitive psychology and human
physiology, and come up with some hard evidence about human limitations. This can then be used to provide informed
guidelines.

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