The Effects of Natural Sounds and Proxemic Distances on the Perception of a Noisy Domestic Flying Robot

in ACM Transactions on Human - Robot Interaction (in press)

When flying robots are used in close-range interaction with humans, the noise they generate, also called consequential sound, is a critical parameter for user acceptance. We conjecture that there is a ... [more ▼]

When flying robots are used in close-range interaction with humans, the noise they generate, also called consequential sound, is a critical parameter for user acceptance. We conjecture that there is a benefit in adding natural sounds to noisy domestic drones. To test our hypothesis experimentally, we carried out a mixed-methods research study (N=56) on reported user perception of a sonified domestic flying robot with three sound conditions at three distances. The natural sounds studied were respectively added to the robot’s inherent noises during flying; namely a birdsong and a rain sound, plus a control condition of no added sound. The distances studied were set according to proxemics; namely near, middle, and far. Our results show that adding birdsong or rain sound affects the participants’ perceptions, and the proxemic distances play a nonnegligible role. For instance, we found that participants liked the bird condition the most when the drone was at far, while they disliked the same sound the most when at near. We also found that participants’ perceptions strongly depended on their associations and interpretations deriving from previous experience. We derived six concrete design recommendations. [less ▲]

"Do we need an entire course about it?": Evaluating two years of teaching HCI in computer science

Scientific Conference (2022, May 01)

Educators increasingly agree on the importance of teaching Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) to Computer Science (CS) students, but there is debate on how to best integrate HCI into CS curricula ... [more ▼]

Educators increasingly agree on the importance of teaching Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) to Computer Science (CS) students, but there is debate on how to best integrate HCI into CS curricula. Unfortunately, standard course evaluations typically do not provide sufficient insights for improving HCI classes. In the present article, we used a human-centered design approach to evaluate our HCI classes, building on a qualitative study with CS students from four introductory HCI classes over two years. We report on a qualitative assessment through interviews, photo elicitation and sentence completion. Specifically, we addressed four research questions: which contents were the most relevant, how students experienced the courses, how they view the role of HCI in CS, and which outcomes they perceived from the HCI courses. We gathered rich qualitative insights beyond the standard course evaluations and derived concrete enhancements for future course iterations. We discuss implications for other HCI educators and contribute recommendations for the living HCI curriculum. Furthermore, we reflect on the usefulness of our methodological approach to collect in-depth constructive feedback from students. [less ▲]

Creating positive learning experiences with technology: A field study on the effects of user experience for digital concept mapping

in Heliyon (2022), 8(4),

Learning and assessment are increasingly mediated by digital technologies. Thus, learners’ experiences with these digital technologies are growing in importance, as they might affect learning and ... [more ▼]

Learning and assessment are increasingly mediated by digital technologies. Thus, learners’ experiences with these digital technologies are growing in importance, as they might affect learning and assessment. The present paper explores the impact of user experience on digital concept mapping. It builds on user experience theory to explain variance in the intention to use digital concept mapping tools and in concept map-based assessment scores. Furthermore, it identifies fulfillment of psychological needs as an important driver of positive experiences. In a field study in three schools and a university (N = 71), we tested two concept mapping prototypes on computers and tablets. We found that user experience is a significant factor explaining variance in intention to use. User experience also explained variance in three out of four concept mapping scores on tablets, potentially related to the lower pragmatic quality of the tablet prototypes. Fulfillment of psychological needs strongly affected perceptions of different qualities of user experience with digital concept mapping. These results indicate that user experience needs to be considered in digital concept mapping to provide a positive and successful environment for learning and assessment. Finally, we discuss implications for designers of digital learning and assessment tools. [less ▲]

Progressive Web-Apps: Die Dos and Dont's im UX-Design

Article for general public (2021)

Knowledge assessment with concept maps: Opportunities and challenges

Scientific Conference (2021, July)

21st-century digital society poses tremendous challenges for education and assessment. Learners have to understand the complex relations between diverse topics and learn how to learn their entire lives ... [more ▼]

21st-century digital society poses tremendous challenges for education and assessment. Learners have to understand the complex relations between diverse topics and learn how to learn their entire lives. Concept mapping is a promising approach to address these issues. It is a method that uses concepts connected by labeled links to visualize a semantic network of knowledge. Concept mapping is predestined for a digital approach because it allows for easy interactive editing, innovative test items, and incorporation of multimodal information. Concept mapping is available for summative and formative assessment and, thus, provides the opportunity to become a vital part of modern education. The biggest advantage of concept mapping (i.e., a comprehensive and yet comprehensible visualization of complex relations) also represents the biggest challenge when it comes to assessment with - and scoring of - concept maps. The first challenge is the enormous amount of indicators used for scoring concept maps in assessment. A second challenge comes from the fact that educators using concept mapping in their assessment have to understand and interpret the indicators that are used in scoring concept maps. This presentation reports on a Ph.D. project that investigates digital concept mapping in the context of knowledge assessment from a user experience perspective. The results are based on, first, a comprehensive international systematic literature review on concept map scoring, and second, three empirical studies covering the needs and experiences of learners and educators in concept mapping. It presents key findings from the iterative user experience design of a concept mapping tool as part of the online assessment platform OASYS, an overview of indicators used in concept map scoring, and research opportunities in knowledge assessment with concept maps. Finally, it stresses the value that user experience design brings to knowledge assessment with concept maps. [less ▲]

Connaissances en matière de durabilité et compréhension de liens complexes – une étude basée sur la cartographie conceptuelle

in SCRIPT; LUCET (Eds.) Rapport national sur l’éducation au Luxembourg 2021 (2021)

Les questions complexes liées à la durabilité posent des défis majeurs aux apprenant(e)s et aux enseignant(e)s au sein des écoles et des universités : comment représenter des liens complexes de façon ... [more ▼]

Les questions complexes liées à la durabilité posent des défis majeurs aux apprenant(e)s et aux enseignant(e)s au sein des écoles et des universités : comment représenter des liens complexes de façon judicieuse, appropriée et bien lisible, les assimiler et les évaluer ? Les cartes conceptuelles (Concept Maps) constituent une méthode permettant d’illustrer ceci avec précision (Novak & Gowin, 1984). Elle consiste à établir des réseaux formés de termes et de liaisons. Les termes, nommés « concepts », sont pour la plupart représentés par des formes. En ce qui concerne les liaisons, elles sont généralement appelées « connecteurs » et représentées sous la forme de flèches (souvent annotées). Les unités de sens formées par les concepts et les connecteurs sont appelées « propositions » et sont comparables à des phrases dans des textes (Ruiz-Primo & Shavelson, 1996). Les cartes conceptuelles représentent ainsi les liens inhérents à un sujet de façon visuelle et structurée. [less ▲]

UX-Maturity: Mensch im Fokus, Erfolg im Visier

Article for general public (2021)

User experience (UX) is a key success factor in the design of digital products and services. However, companies and other organizations are at different stages when it comes to aligning their processes ... [more ▼]

User experience (UX) is a key success factor in the design of digital products and services. However, companies and other organizations are at different stages when it comes to aligning their processes for a positive UX. UX maturity models help to identify where an organization stands in terms of UX maturity. How can companies use this to systematically design for positive UX and turn it into business advantages? [less ▲]

Scoring concept Maps: Insights from an international, systematic literature review

Presentation (2019, November 06)

Mediengestaltung: Der Ausbildungsbegleiter

Book published by Rheinwerk Verlag - 1 (2019)

Experience matters: Bridging the gap between experience- and functionality-driven design in technology-enhanced learning

in International Journal on Interaction Design & Architecture(s) (2019), 42

With the growing importance of digital technologies in learning and assessment, it is important to consider user experience (UX) to ensure that tools provide useful functionalities for learning without ... [more ▼]

With the growing importance of digital technologies in learning and assessment, it is important to consider user experience (UX) to ensure that tools provide useful functionalities for learning without overwhelming users, to motivate users and ensure that they have positive learning experiences, and to allow users to realize their potential with the help of technology. Building on a case study of concept mapping for technology-enhanced learning, we combined experience-driven and functionality-driven approaches in co-design sessions in four school classes (67 students). We investigated the anticipated experiences that students imagined as well as the functionalities and characteristics they expected. We found that combining experience-driven and functionality-driven approaches is a valuable method for improving technology-enhanced learning. [less ▲]