Towards an account of intuitiveness

Intuitive systems are usable systems. Design guidelines advocate intuitiveness and vendors claim it - but what does it mean for a user interface, interactive system, or device to be intuitive? A review of the use of the term 'intuitive' indicates that it has two distinct but overlapping meanings, namely intuitiveness based on familiarity and intuitiveness reflecting our embodiment (and frequently both). While everyday usage indicates that familiarity means either a passing acquaintance or an intimacy with something or someone, it will be concluded that familiarity might best be equated with 'know-how', which in turn is based on a deep, often tacit, understanding. The intuitive nature of tangible user interfaces will in turn be attributed to embodiment rather than tangibility per se. Merleau-Ponty writes that it is through our bodies that we 'prehend' the world. A number of disciplines now regard action-perception as so closely coupled that they are better considered as a dyad rather than separately. A modified treatment of action-perception coupling is proposed, with familiarity providing an epistemic core, as the basis of intuitiveness

Habituated: A Merleau-Pontian Analysis of the Smartphone

This paper offers a phenomenological account of our relationship to our smartphones rooted in the work of philosophers Maurice Merleau-Ponty (1908–1961) and Drew Leder (1954–). We argue that the nature of this relationship has implications for the ways we conceptualize and promote information literacy in the era of mobile ubiquity. After reviewing recent LIS literature on mobile devices in libraries, we discuss Merleau-Ponty’s notion of the habit body and Drew Leder’s development of the Merleau-Pontian concept of incorporation. We then apply these concepts to our use of smartphones, paying particular attention to the incorporation of the smartphone in our bodily habit and what this means for our relationship to the information we access on this device. The paper concludes by considering how the insights from this analysis of the smartphone could be integrated into existing information literacy conversations through the lens of dispositions

INVITATION: An Elderly Friendly ICT-enabled Interactive Installation to Promote Social Participations

Many countries are facing significant challenges posed by aging populations, and many of these elderly people are increasingly socially isolated, raising the need to develop senior-friendly services and settings for community life. ICT-enabled technologies can be used to help the elderly maintain adequate degrees of social participation. This paper reports the design and production of an innovative recreation installation featuring elderly friendly technologies to enhance the social lives of elderly Chinese people. The contents are composed of modernized visualization elements of traditional Chinese painting designed to engage elderly Chinese people and promote interaction and participation.</p

Les activités pratiques artistiques en arts plastiques

Everyone agrees to put practical activities at the heart of artistic teaching. Whether or not there isan “artistic”, “aesthetic” or “poetic” dimension is a question that haunts these teachings. How can we be sure that artistic dimension is present, in particular during practical workshop activities? Since the early of the 19th century, democratization of arts has been the main aim of practicalartistic education, the artistic dimension is ensured by the development of creative imaginationand its support from artistic circles, just like our contemporary teachings. This article proposes to describe the place given to the artistic dimension in practical activities, by French and Quebec plastic arts programs at elementary and secondary levels and more generally in the teachingof drawing in the 19th and 20th centuries. Noting the limits of French-speaking practices and research with regard to practical artistic activities, we conclude with the presentation of research examples to develop a didactic of practical artistic activities, which seems essential to us, to whatwe could call an aesthetic experiential culture.  Todos concordam que as atividades práticas estejam no cerne do ensino artístico. A presençaou não de uma dimensão « artística », « estética » ou « poética » é uma questão que paira sobre esta área de educação. Como se pode ter certeza que uma dessas dimensões está presente durante as atividades práticas no ateliê ? A democratização das artes é a principal finalidade do ensino artístico na prática, desde o início do século XIX, e a dimensão artística é garantida pelo desenvolvimento da imaginação criativa e o suporte dos meios artísticos, conforme nosso ensino contemporâneo. Este artigo se propõe a descrever o lugar atribuído à dimensão artística nas atividades práticas pelos programas de artes plásticas franceses e quebequenses no ensino fundamental e mais amplamente na formação em desenho, nos séculos XIX e XX. Constatando os limites das práticas e das pesquisas francófonas quanto às atividades práticas artísticas, concluímos com a apresentação de exemplos de pesquisa para desenvolver uma didática das atividades práticas artísticas, o que nos parece indispensável ao que chamamos de cultura experiencial estética.  Tout le monde s’accorde pour mettre les activités pratiques au cœur des enseignements artistiques.La présence ou non d’une dimension « artistique », « esthétique » ou « poétique » est une questionqui hante ces enseignements. Comment peut-on être sûr qu’une telle dimension y soit présente enparticulier durant les activités pratiques en atelier ? La démocratisation des arts est la finalité principale visée par les enseignements artistiques pratiques depuis le début du 19e siècle, et la dimensionartistique y est assurée par le développement de l’imagination créatrice et sa caution des milieuxartistiques, tout comme nos enseignements contemporains. Cet article propose de décrire la place accordée à la dimension artistique dans les activités pratiques, par les programmes d’arts plastiques français et québécois au primaire ou au secondaire et plus largement dans les enseignements du dessin aux 19e et 20e siècles. Constatant les limites des pratiques et des recherches francophones quant aux activités pratiques artistiques, nous concluons sur la présentation d’exemples de recherche pour développer une didactique des activités pratiques artistiques, qui nous paraît indispensable, à ceque nous appelons une culture expérientielle esthétique

Enlightened trial and error

Human-computer interaction as a rationalistic, engineering discipline has been taught successfully for more than 25 years. The established narrative is one of designing usable systems for users, some of whom have been described as “naïve”, safely installed behind their desktop personal computers. But the world is changed. All aspects of society use interactive technology, it is frequently carried about with us, we talk to it, gesture at it, caress it and check it compulsively. The original emphasis on designing for usability has given way to creating an optimal “user experience”. So we are faced with two distinct but related issues: firstly, how do we characterise this new technology and our relationship with it and secondly, how do we teach to design for it. We have developed an approach, which might formally be described as being based on a “convergent-divergent dialectic” but is, at its heart, recognisably playful

Intuition and Its Impact on Information Systems Success

The concept of Intuition is not new to management and behavioral sciences. However, defining Intuition has been anything but intuitive even in these heavily studied domains. This research seeks to expand current Intuition research into the information systems (IS) domain. Given the velocity of change in contemporary IS, researchers and practitioners are seeking richer explanations and success measurements to better understand and promote effective use of IS. A preliminary content analysis of select proceedings from the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS), designed to assess the investigation and interest in the concept of Intuition as a contemporary IS research topic, suggests this topic is relevant to IS. This research introduces IS Intuition as a mediating variable impacting IS Success. Healthcare IS provides the context for this study although the results are anticipated to be generalizable to other IS contexts. Quantitative results from a survey found the mediating impact of human intuition to be less significant than originally hoped. However, qualitative results from a followon survey of healthcare executives, managers and IS consultants illustrate 62% of respondents believe Intuition impacts IS success and EHR adoption. Additionally, a growing body of research since this study began provides strong empirical guidance that intuition can be challenging to measure as with the common self-report measures. vi Studies indicate experimentation and other Neuro-based methods may be better suited to aid in measurement of intuition. Thus, further investigation through other epistemologies to determine the impact of intuition on IS success is warranted

Multiparametric interfaces for fine-grained control of digital music

Digital technology provides a very powerful medium for musical creativity, and the way in which we interface and interact with computers has a huge bearing on our ability to realise our artistic aims. The standard input devices available for the control of digital music tools tend to afford a low quality of embodied control; they fail to realise our innate expressiveness and dexterity of motion. This thesis looks at ways of capturing more detailed and subtle motion for the control of computer music tools; it examines how this motion can be used to control music software, and evaluates musicians’ experience of using these systems. Two new musical controllers were created, based on a multiparametric paradigm where multiple, continuous, concurrent motion data streams are mapped to the control of musical parameters. The first controller, Phalanger, is a markerless video tracking system that enables the use of hand and finger motion for musical control. EchoFoam, the second system, is a malleable controller, operated through the manipulation of conductive foam. Both systems use machine learning techniques at the core of their functionality. These controllers are front ends to RECZ, a high-level mapping tool for multiparametric data streams. The development of these systems and the evaluation of musicians’ experience of their use constructs a detailed picture of multiparametric musical control. This work contributes to the developing intersection between the fields of computer music and human-computer interaction. The principal contributions are the two new musical controllers, and a set of guidelines for the design and use of multiparametric interfaces for the control of digital music. This work also acts as a case study of the application of HCI user experience evaluation methodology to musical interfaces. The results highlight important themes concerning multiparametric musical control. These include the use of metaphor and imagery, choreography and language creation, individual differences and uncontrol. They highlight how this style of interface can fit into the creative process, and advocate a pluralistic approach to the control of digital music tools where different input devices fit different creative scenarios

Designing for Aesthetic Experiences from the Body and Felt-Sense

Third Wave Human Computer Interaction (HCI) has opened the door for research agendas placing the lived body in the centre of discussion. However, aspects such as the articulation of aesthetic experiences, as well as the transference of somatic values into the design practice require more systematic methods to analyse, articulate and frame those values into practical design solutions. Recognising this gap, this thesis investigates the use of bodily self-awareness and subjective experience as a material for accessing discoveries, by integrating theoretical and practical principles from Eugene Gendlin’s psychosomatic technique Focusing into the fields of design and HCI. Particularly important is Gendlin’s notion of felt sense, which can be defined as a state; a complex bodily sense of implicit knowing, consisting of an implicit source of sensations, feelings, memories, thoughts and other manifestations difficult to label through straightforward definitions. These manifestations are carefully articulated and documented by those who experience the felt-sense, becoming the material capture of aesthetic experiences used for research and practice. The research questions are developed around how aesthetic qualities emerging from the interaction with the felt-sense, objects and technology assist in the meaning-generation process, and how these outcomes can be utilised in design practice. In terms of methodology, this thesis is inspired by phenomenological research, and follows the conventions of design-oriented research towards the generation of knowledge for design. Four studies were run, dealing with the exploration of novel design methods, and the use of sensory stimuli on the body during the practice of Focusing. As a result, this thesis contributes with a set of Focusing-oriented design methods dealing with different stages of the design process, ranging from inspiration, data collection, ideation, evaluation and prototyping

Exploring Intuitive Use

The term "Intuitive use" has become a common phrase to describe interfaces and products, however it is rarely defined. Research regarding intuitive use is in its infancy, beginning primarily in 2003. With the development of new terms in Human Factors and Human-Computer Interaction, it is important for Designers and Users to clearly understand their definitions and how those definitions impact design requirements. The three research questions were as follows. (1) Is there a significant gap between Users’ and Designers' definitions of intuitive use? (2) Do their definitions agree with the literature definition? (3) Can they distinguish the attributes separating intuitive use from usability? A survey was conducted of 134 participants (41 Users and 93 Designers). The results showed no significant difference between Users' and Designers' perceptions of the attributes that comprise intuitive use (Subconscious use, Effective results, Prior Knowledge, Low mental effort, and Satisfying results). Users and Designers strongly agreed (between 4-5 on a 5 point Likert scale) with the literature for the attributes Effective Results, Prior Knowledge, and Low mental effort. Users and Designers had a moderate level of agreement (between 3-4 on a 5 point Likert scale) for the attributes Subconscious and Satisfying results. Lastly, Users and Designers had a strong level of agreement for the attribute Cost ($), inferring they do not associate this attribute with intuitive use. Users and Designer had a moderate level of agreement for the attributes Users' Physical Effort and Time, inferring they do not associate these attributes with intuitive use. The results were discussed and recommendations were given for researchers and Designers