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 ▲]

Complex, but in a good way? How to represent encryption to non-experts through text and visuals – Evidence from expert co-creation and a vignette experiment

in Computers in Human Behavior Reports (2022), 4

An ongoing discussion in the field of usable privacy and security debates whether security mechanisms should be visible to end-users during interactions with technology, or hidden away. This paper ... [more ▼]

An ongoing discussion in the field of usable privacy and security debates whether security mechanisms should be visible to end-users during interactions with technology, or hidden away. This paper addresses this question using a mixed-methods approach, focusing on encryption as a mechanism for confidentiality during data transmission on a smartphone application. In study 1, we conducted a qualitative co-creation study with security and Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) experts (N = 9) to create appropriate textual and visual representations of the security mechanism encryption in data transmission. We investigated this question in two contexts: online banking and e-voting. In study 2, we put these ideas to the test by presenting these visual and textual representations to non-expert users in an online vignette experiment (N = 2180). We found a statistically significant and positive effect of the textual representation of encryption on perceived security and understanding, but not on user experience (UX). More complex text describing encryption resulted in higher perceived security and more accurate understanding. The visual representation of encryption had no statistically significant effect on perceived security, UX or understanding. Our study contributes to the larger discussion regarding visible instances of security and their impact on user perceptions. [less ▲]

A Systematic Literature Review of Empirical Methods and Risk Representation in Usable Privacy and Security Research

in ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (2021), 28(6), 50

Usable privacy and security researchers have developed a variety of approaches to represent risk to research participants. To understand how these approaches are used and when each might be most ... [more ▼]

Usable privacy and security researchers have developed a variety of approaches to represent risk to research participants. To understand how these approaches are used and when each might be most appropriate, we conducted a systematic literature review of methods used in security and privacy studies with human participants. From a sample of 633 papers published at five top conferences between 2014 and 2018 that included keywords related to both security/privacy and usability, we systematically selected and analyzed 284 full-length papers that included human subjects studies. Our analysis focused on study methods; risk representation; the use of prototypes, scenarios, and educational intervention; the use of deception to simulate risk; and types of participants. We discuss benefits and shortcomings of the methods, and identify key methodological, ethical, and research challenges when representing and assessing security and privacy risk. We also provide guidelines for the reporting of user studies in security and privacy. [less ▲]

Child–Computer Interaction: From a systematic review towards an integrated understanding of interaction design methods for children

in International Journal of Child - Computer Interaction (2021), 100398

Child–Computer Interaction (CCI) is a steadily growing field that focuses on children as a prominent and emergent user group. For more than twenty years, the Interaction Design for Children (IDC ... [more ▼]

Child–Computer Interaction (CCI) is a steadily growing field that focuses on children as a prominent and emergent user group. For more than twenty years, the Interaction Design for Children (IDC) community has developed, extended, and advanced research and design methods for children’s involvement in designing and evaluating interactive technologies. However, as the CCI field evolves, the need arises for an integrated understanding of interaction design methods currently applied. To that end, we analyzed 272 full papers across a selection of journals and conference venues from 2005 to 2020. Our review contributes to the literature on this topic by (1) examining a holistic child population, including developmentally diverse children and children from 0 to 18 years old, (2) illustrating the interplay of children’s and adults’ roles across different methods, and (3) identifying patterns of triangulation in the methods applied while taking recent ethical debates about children’s involvement in design into account. While we found that most studies were conducted in natural settings, we observed a preference for evaluating interactive artifacts at a single point in time. Method triangulation was applied in two-thirds of the papers, with a preference for qualitative methods. Researchers used triangulation predominantly with respect to mainstream methods that were not specifically developed for child participants, such as user observation combined with semi-structured interviews or activity logging. However, the CCI field employs a wide variety of creative design methods which engage children more actively in the design process by having them take on roles such as informant and design partner. In turn, we see that more passive children’s roles, e.g., user or tester, are more often linked to an expert mindset by the adult. Adults take on a wider spectrum of roles in the design process when addressing specific developmental groups, such as children with autism spectrum disorder. We conclude with a critical discussion about the constraints involved in conducting CCI research and discuss implications that can inform future methodological advances in the field and underlying challenges. [less ▲]

User experience challenges for technology-based assessments

Presentation (2021, June)

Casual Leisure in Rich-Prospect: Advancing Visual Information Behavior for Digital Museum Collections

in Journal on Computing and Cultural Heritage (2021), 14(3),

As digital cultural collections become increasingly sophisticated in their scope and functionality, there is a need to build an in-depth understanding concerning the information behaviors of users in this ... [more ▼]

As digital cultural collections become increasingly sophisticated in their scope and functionality, there is a need to build an in-depth understanding concerning the information behaviors of users in this new domain. Research has demonstrated that many digital museum visitors are engaged in casual leisure during exploration of a collection, suggesting that they do not have an inherent information goal but rather seek new experiences or learning opportunities based on personal curiosity and moments of discovery. Consequently, understanding how to translate casual leisure contexts into meaningful interaction design may play a critical role in designing engaging digital collections. Our study reports on the user experience of a largely unexplored user interface design framework called rich-prospect, which was originally developed to enhance browsing and discovery for complex visual collections. We performed a mixed-method, within-subjects study (N=30) that simulated a casual leisure approach to information browsing and retrieval across three different rich-prospect interfaces for digital cultural heritage. Our results show that rich-prospect scores well in the hedonic facets of its user experience, whereas pragmatic aspects have room for improvement. Additionally, through our qualitative analysis of participant feedback, we derived salient themes relating to the exploratory browsing experience. We conclude with a series of design implications to better connect interactive elements with casual leisure contexts for digital cultural collections. © 2021 Owner/Author. [less ▲]

Digitalisierung der pädagogischen Diagnostik: Von Evolution zu Revolution

in LUCET; SCRIPT (Eds.) Nationaler Bildungsbericht Luxemburg 2021 (2021)

Virtual Masterpieces: Innovation through Public Co-creation for Digital Museum Collections

in International Journal of the Inclusive Museum (2021), 15(1), 65-83

In this study, we describe the results of a series of co-creation workshops in museums with the goal of designing future digital cultural collections. Ranging from exhibition teasers to comprehensive ... [more ▼]

In this study, we describe the results of a series of co-creation workshops in museums with the goal of designing future digital cultural collections. Ranging from exhibition teasers to comprehensive virtual galleries, digital collections are an increasingly prominent feature of many museum websites but remain a largely unexplored facet of the visitor experience. Building on research in museum experience design, which suggests that involving the public in the development of on-site museum spaces and technologies supports better engagement, we investigated how this translates into digital-only contexts. We invited members of the public (N = 12) to the Luxembourg National Museum of History and Art for a series of design jams to investigate how non-experts envision the future of digital interactivity with museums through a series of ideation and rapid prototyping activities. Our analysis of the workshops and resulting prototypes reveals the design space of digital collections across three continuums of experience: individual/social, creation/consumption, and complementary/standalone. We conclude with design implications, namely how museum professionals can apply these dimensions to the design and implementation of digital collections. [less ▲]