Working with People & Project Overview

“Doing right by your participants”

In class exercise – observe someone On your cell phone

Look up most recently called and return call

Add each other’s name to the phone book

Swap phones Now look up your name and call yourself

What did we learn?

What was surprising? What problems did you observe? How would this be different in real

world? How did you feel about being

observed?

Evaluation Means People

Recall: Users and their tasks are identified Needs and requirements are specified Interface is designed, prototype built But is it any good? Does the system support

the users in their tasks? Is it better than what was there before (if anything)?

Evaluating your design requires human participants

Issues of rights, respect, ethics

Ethics

Testing can be arduous; privacy is important Each participant should consent to be in

experiment (informal or formal) Know what experiment involves, what to

expect, what the potential risks are Must be able to stop without danger or

penalty All participants to be treated with respect

IRB, Participants, & Ethics

Institutional Review Board (IRB) Reviews all research involving human (or

animal) participants Safeguarding the participants, and thereby

the researcher and university Not a science review (i.e., not to asess

your research ideas); only safety & ethics http://www.research.uncc.edu/Comp/human.cfm

Ethics Certification

Ethics is not just common sense Training being standardized to

ensure even and equal understanding of issues

Recruiting Participants Various “subject pools”

Volunteers Paid participants Students (e.g., psych undergrads) for course credit Friends, acquaintances, family, lab members “Public space” participants - e.g., observing people

walking through a museum

Must fit user population (validity) Motivation is a big factor - not only $$ but also

explaining the importance of the research Note: Maintaining proper ethics applies to all

participants, even friends and family

Consent

Why important?People can be sensitive about this process

and issues Errors will likely be made, participant may feel

inadequateMay be mentally or physically strenuous

What are the potential risks (there are always risks)?Examples?

“Vulnerable” populations need special care & consideration Children; disabled; pregnant; students (why?)

Before Study

Be well prepared so participant’s time is not wasted

Make sure they know you are testing software, not them(Usability testing, not User testing)

Maintain privacy Explain procedures without compromising

results Can quit anytime Administer signed consent form

During Study

Make sure participant is comfortable Session should not be too long Maintain relaxed atmosphere Never indicate displeasure or anger

After Study

State how session will help you improve system (“debriefing”)

Show participant how to perform failed tasks Don’t compromise privacy (never identify

people, only show videos with explicit permission)

Data to be stored anonymously, securely, and/or destroyed

Attribution Theory

Studies why people believe that they succeeded or failed--themselves or outside factors (gender, age differences)

Explain how errors or failures are not participant’s problem---places where interface needs to be improved

Observation

Done at any time during design process

Challenge: stepping away from personal knowledge and understanding the point of view of the user

Observation cont.

“Quick and dirty” or formal In lab – usability studies In field

As an outsiderOr participant (ethnography)

Assignment 1

Observe someone or something within our project theme Does not have to be digital photos Be creative!

Remember ethics! If asking someone to do something, explain

the point, get verbal consent Be prepared Keep things comfortable

What to take away?

Who, Where, and What details See frameworks on pg. 368 for some

questions Then, draw implications – what was

interesting to you? What might this tell you about problems, applications, etc.?

Project Structure

Group project – 3 or 4 people Worth 40% of grade, 10% per part Design and evaluate an interface

1 - Understand the problem 2 - Design alternatives3 - Prototype & evaluation plan4 – Evaluation

Project theme: Displaying and/or sharing digital photos Think of someone else

Avoid being biased by your intuitions Think off the desktop too!

Mobile, handheld, environmental Think everyday

Home Think about people first, then

technology

Programming requirements

Leverage team expertise

Full functionality is NOT intention

But good evaluation requires authentic experience

Project Details

Part 1 - Understanding the problem – Due Sept. 20 Describe tasks, users, environment, social

context Any existing systems in place Helps form basis for your requirements “Describe the problem, not the solution”

Project Details

Part 2 - Design alternatives – Due Oct. 13 Storyboards, mock-ups for multiple different

designs Explain decisions Poster session in class previous week (10/6)

Part 3 - System prototype & eval plan - Due Nov. 11 Semi-working interface functionality - enough

to evaluate Plan for conducting evaluation Demo prototype

Project Details

Part 4 – Evaluation – Due Dec. 1Conduct evaluation with example

usersCharacterize pros and cons of the UIDiscuss what you would do to fix

problems Present results to class 12/1 and 12/6

Project Presentations

Informal poster sessionFeedback on ideasOct. 6 (right before fall break)Other students and “expert” gallery

Formal project presentationFinal two classes20 minute summary

Project Groups

3-4 peopleYou decideDiverse is best!Consider schedules, email habits, etc.

Cool name Form by end of next week

Project Topics

Real “client”Professional family and friends?Organization you belong to, volunteer

with?Hobbies or other activities?

DomainOffice, home, school

Previous Projects

System for organizing and showcasing art Mall kiosk Friend Finder on a cell phone System to assist real estate agents with

directions and details for showing houses System for assisting anesthesiologists Campus companion University remote control for a hotel room Money tracker in your wallet

Example: My Picture Frame

Sharing photos with distant people Viewing a person’s “album” Letting someone know you are

thinking of them through photos Features: web interface to view and

upload, picture frame on someone’s desk that changes

Your turn

Pair or triple up… Brainstorm

ideas/problems/applications with digital photo display and sharing

Choose a couple and elaborate Pause to share ideas with everyone…