A Conceptual Model of Exploration Wayfinding: An Integrated Theoretical Framework and Computational Methodology

This thesis is an attempt to integrate contending cognitive approaches to modeling wayfinding behavior. The primary goal is to create a plausible model for exploration tasks within indoor environments. This conceptual model can be extended for practical applications in the design, planning, and Social sciences. Using empirical evidence a cognitive schema is designed that accounts for perceptual and behavioral preferences in pedestrian navigation. Using this created schema, as a guiding framework, the use of network analysis and space syntax act as a computational methods to simulate human exploration wayfinding in unfamiliar indoor environments. The conceptual model provided is then implemented in two ways. First of which is by updating an existing agent-based modeling software directly. The second means of deploying the model is using a spatial interaction model that distributed visual attraction and movement permeability across a graph-representation of building floor plans

Gender differences in navigation dialogues with computer systems

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Gender is among the most influential of the factors underlying differences in spatial abilities, human communication and interactions with and through computers. Past research has offered important insights into gender differences in navigation and language use. Yet, given the multidimensionality of these domains, many issues remain contentious while others unexplored. Moreover, having been derived from non-interactive, and often artificial, studies, the generalisability of this research to interactive contexts of use, particularly in the practical domain of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), may be problematic. At the same time, little is known about how gender strategies, behaviours and preferences interact with the features of technology in various domains of HCI, including collaborative systems and systems with natural language interfaces. Targeting these knowledge gaps, the thesis aims to address the central question of how gender differences emerge and operate in spatial navigation dialogues with computer systems. To this end, an empirical study is undertaken, in which, mixed-gender and same-gender pairs communicate to complete an urban navigation task, with one of the participants being under the impression that he/she interacts with a robot. Performance and dialogue data were collected using a custom system that supported synchronous navigation and communication between the user and the robot. Based on this empirical data, the thesis describes the key role of the interaction of gender in navigation performance and communication processes, which outweighed the effect of individual gender, moderating gender differences and reversing predicted patterns of performance and language use. This thesis has produced several contributions; theoretical, methodological and practical. From a theoretical perspective, it offers novel findings in gender differences in navigation and communication. The methodological contribution concerns the successful application of dialogue as a naturalistic, and yet experimentally sound, research paradigm to study gender and spatial language. The practical contributions include concrete design guidelines for natural language systems and implications for the development of gender-neutral interfaces in specific domains of HCI

I am here - are you there? Sense of presence and implications for virtual world design

We use the language of presence and place when we interact online: in our instant text messaging windows we often post: Are you there? Research indicates the importance of the sense of presence for computer-supported collaborative virtual learning. To realize the potential of virtual worlds such as Second Life, which may have advantages over conventional text-based environments, we need an understanding of design and the emergence of the sense of presence. A construct was created for the sense of presence, as a collaborative, action-based process (Spagnolli, Varotto, & Mantovani, 2003) with four dimensions (sense of place, social presence, individual agency, and mediated collaborative actions). Nine design principles were mapped against the four dimensions. The guiding question for the study\u27s exploration of the sense of presence was: In the virtual world Second Life, what is the effect on the sense of presence in collaborative learning spaces designed according to the sense of presence construct proposed, using two of the nine design principles, wayfinding and annotation? Another question of interest was: What are the relationships, if any, among the four dimensions of presence? The research utilized both quantitative and qualitative measures. Twenty learners recruited from the Graduate School of Education and Psychology at Pepperdine University carried out three assigned collaborative activities in Second Life under design conditions foregrounding each of the two design conditions, and a combination of the two. Analyses from surveys, Second Life interactions, interviews and a focus group were conducted to investigate how various designed learning environments based in the virtual world contributed to the sense of presence, and to learners\u27 ability to carry out collaborative learning. The major research findings were: (a) the construct appears robust, and future research in its application to other virtual worlds may be fruitful; (b) the experience of wayfinding (finding a path through a virtual space) resulted overall in an observed pattern of a slightly stronger sense of place; (c) the experience of annotation (building) resulted overall in an observed pattern of a slightly stronger sense of agency; and (d) there is a positive association between sense of place and sense of agency

Designing and evaluating information spaces: a navigational perspective.

Navigation in two and three dimensional electronic environments has become an important usabilityissue.Research in to the use of hypertext systems would appear to suggest that people suffer from avariety of navigational problems in these environments. In addition users also encounter problems in 3Denvironments and in applications software. Therefore in order to enhance the ease of use from the pointof view of preventing errors and making it more pleasurable the navigating in information spaceapproach to HCI has been adopted.The research presented in this thesis examines whether the study of real world environments, in particularaspects of the built environment, urban planning and environmental psychology are beneficial in thedevelopment of guidelines for interface design and evaluation. In doing so the thesis examines three mainresearch questions (1) is there a transfer of design knowledge from real to electronic spaces? (2) canconcepts be provided in a series of useful guidelines? (3) are the guidelines useful for the design andevaluation of electronic spaces?Based upon the results of the two main studies contained within this thesis it is argued that thenavigational perspective is one which is relevant to user interface design and evaluation and thatnavigation in electronic spaces is comparable to but not identical with actions within the real world.Moreover, the studies pointed to the validity of the core concepts when evaluating 2D and 3D spacesand designing 3D spaces. The thesis also points to the relevancy of the overall design guidance in 2Dand 3D environments and the ability to make such information available through a software tool

On the relation between body and movement space representation: an experimental investigation on spinal cord injured people

Body Representation (BR) and Movement Space Perception (MSP) are fundamental for human beings in order to move in space and interact with object s and other people. Both BR and space representation change after spinal cord injuries in complete paraplegic individuals (CPP), who suffer from lower limbs paralysis and anesthesia. To date, the interaction between BR and MSP in paraplegic individuals rem ains unexplored. In two consecutive experiments, we tested I ) if the individual\u2019s wheelchair is embodied in BR; and ii) if the embodied wheelchair modifies the MSP. For the first question a speeded detection task was used. Participants had to respond to v isual stimuli flashing on their trunk, legs or wheelchair. In three counterbalanced conditions across participant, they took part to the experiment while: 1) sitting in their wheelchair, 2) in another wheelchair, or 3) with the LEDs on a wooden bar. To in dicate the embodiment, there was no difference in the CPP\u2019s responses for LEDs on the body and personal wheelchair while these were slower in other conditions After this, while sitting in their or another wheelchair, CPPs were asked to judge the slope of a ramp rendered in immersive virtual reality and to estimate the distance of a flag positioned over the ramp. When on their own wheelchair, CPPs perceived the flag closer than in the other wheelchair. These results indicate that the continuous use of a too l induces embodiment and that this i mpact on the perception of MSP

Gender Differences in Spatial Cognition: Wayfinding Performance and Sketch Mapping Activity of German Speakers

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial TechnologiesThis study aims to examine the wayfinding performance of men and women in a shifting frame of reference while following an outdoor wayfinding task with instructions given in German language. This is replicating the methodology of Ishikawa and Kiyomoto (2008) but adding gender component in the study. Twenty-four (24) German students composed of 12 men and 12 women in the undergraduate and graduate level who are unfamiliar the study area participated in the experiment. Snowball sampling method was used to gather participants. The participants were divided into the absolute-relative (A-R) and the relative-absolute (R-A) groups. For the AR group, the first set of instructions were given in the absolute frame and shifted to relative frame of reference. The R-A group, on the other hand, the participants walked the first route set following relative directions before shifting to the absolute directions in the second route set. The wayfinding measures used in analyzing the participant’s performance were the number of stops, number of deviations, and the off-route distances they made. Also, included are the time spent and the walking speed of each participant. Mixed ANOVA was used for statistical analysis of the result. It resulted in the experiment that participants in both groups had difficulty following the absolute instructions. The A-R group showed more stops and deviations in the whole experiment for the shifting frame of reference. In terms of gender, women made few stops, few deviations, and did not walk off the route frequently based on the absolute or relative frame. A correlation between the result of Sta. Barbara Sense of Direction Scale and the three wayfinding measures was done to examine the individual differences in terms of their spatial skills based on their performance. There were some uncontrolled situations that occurred while the experiment was being undertaken such as the changing weather condition wherein some experiment days will be rainy and snowy however, it did not affect the participant’s wayfinding performance

Using Video for Indoor Navigation Guidance

Buildings such as shopping malls or university campuses are complex and have always been a challenge to walk through. While map is the commonly used navigation aid, it has several limitations. On the other hand, there are studies about how visual navigation elements can help people to navigate better. This thesis would like to explore if video can be used as an alternative method to provide navigation information. The findings of visual navigation elements from other studies were implemented in videos. A user study was performed to see the feasibility of video to be used as an alternative medium to present navigation information. There were 10 participants who joined the user study. In the user study, the participants were asked to understand routes by reading a map and watching a navigation video and then walk to the specified rooms. Questionnaires were provided to the participants to record their experience in using the map and the video to understand the routes. Interviews were conducted at the end of each user study to get more comments and feedback from the participants. The user study showed that watching navigation videos allow participants to perform navigation in a more efficient manner with fewer error compared to reading maps. The experience of using videos to receive navigation information is also better compared to maps. The result of the user study suggests that providing navigational information in the form of video can be considered as an alternative to the traditional map. Furthermore, this thesis work also compiled recommendations on how to produce navigation videos