USER EVALUATION OF SYMBOLS FOR CORE BUSINESS PROCESS MODELING CONCEPTS

Process modeling notations are visual languages that use symbols to represent their main concepts. This study investigates the quality of such symbols from users’ perspective. The design of a symbol influences whether it is easy to spot in a model and is correctly associated with the concept it represents. In an empirical study with 188 participants, the normative ratings of process model symbols (for the basic concepts of start, end, task, AND, XOR) were gathered on the dimensions of perceptual pop-out, semantic transparency, perceptual discriminability, and aesthetics. Overall, the results are consistent with our predictions based on the theoretical analyses of the designs of the symbols. Prior familiarity with process modeling notations led to more clear-cut evaluations of routing symbols (AND, XOR) and a reduced tendency to prefer middle rating options, but it did not affect the evaluations of the other symbols. Standardization organizations and academic developers of notations can use insights from the study to enhance the usability of process modeling notations

Comprehension of Procedural Visual Business Process Models - A Literature Review

Visual process models are meant to facilitate comprehension of business processes. However, in prac- tice, process models can be difficult to understand. The main goal of this article is to clarify the sources of cog- nitive effort in comprehending process models. The article undertakes a comprehensive descriptive review of empiri- cal and theoretical work in order to categorize and sum- marize systematically existing findings on the factors that influence comprehension of visual process models. Methodologically, the article builds on a review of forty empirical studies that measure objective comprehension of process models, seven studies that measure subjective comprehension and user preferences, and thirty-two arti- cles that discuss the factors that influence the comprehen- sion of process models. The article provides information systems researchers with an overview of the empirical state of the art of process model comprehension and provides recommendations for new research questions to be addressed and methods to be used in future experiments

Probing a Bose-Einstein condensate with an atom laser

A pulsed atom laser derived from a Bose-Einstein condensate is used to probe a second target condensate. The target condensate scatters the incident atom laser pulse. From the spatial distribution of scattered atoms, one can infer important properties of the target condensate and its interaction with the probe pulse. As an example, we measure the s-wave scattering length that, in low energy collisions, describes the interaction between the |F = 1,mF = −1> and |F = 2,mF = 0> hyperfine ground states in 87Rb

Increased number of major amputations during pandemic could be caused by patients’ fear of COVID-19

Objective. To prove or discard the thesis that lessening of number of patients who went to the surgeon’s check-ups even if it led to major amputations of their leg was caused by fear of COVID-19 pandemic. Methods. A retrospective data analysis in a single institution, a tertiary health care centre. Results. The data revealed a significant decrease in number of patients who went to the surgeon’s check-up and increase of major amputations in Corona virus period in four months of most actual COVID-19 pandemic time in Croatia. Conclusion. The patients’ fear of pandemic thesis might best explain this kind of patients’ behaviour

Deutschsprachige Fragebögen zur Usability-Evaluation im Vergleich

Für die Konstruktion gebrauchstauglicher Anwendungssysteme ist eine exakte Evaluierung der Usability eine wertvolle Unterstützung. Zu diesem Zweck werden in der Praxis häufig Usability-Fragebögen herangezogen. Im deutschen Sprachraum sind die beiden Fragebögen Isonorm 9241/10 und Isometrics, die beide Software gemäß der EN ISO 9241-110 evaluieren, weit verbreitet. Die vorliegende Studie widmete sich einem Vergleich dieser beiden Fragebögen hinsichtlich testtheoretischer Gütekriterien. Im Rahmen eines experimentellen Designs wurden die beiden Fragebögen eingesetzt um die Usability von zwei Standard-Softwarepaketen zu bewerten. Hinsichtlich der inhaltlichen Validität der Fragebögen zeigten die Ergebnisse eine hohe Übereinstimmung der Usability-Messung der beiden Fragebögen. Auch weitere testtheoretische Analysen lieferten eine ähnliche Qualitätsbeurteilung beider Fragebögen, weshalb sie aus diesem Blickwinkel gleichermaßen für Forschung und Praxis empfohlen werden können

Influence factors for local comprehensibility of process models

The main aim of this study is to investigate human understanding of process models and to develop an improved understanding of its relevant influence factors. Aided by assumptions from cognitive psychology, this article attempts to address specific deductive reasoning difficulties based on process models. The authors developed a research model to capture the influence of two effects on the cognitive difficulty of reasoning tasks: (i) the presence of different control-flow patterns (such as conditional or parallel execution) in a process model and (ii) the interactivity of model elements. Based on solutions to 61 different reasoning tasks by 155 modelers, the results from this study indicate that the presence of certain control-flow patterns influences the cognitive difficulty of reasoning tasks. In particular, sequence is relatively easy, while loops in a model proved difficult. Modelers with higher process modeling knowledge performed better and rated subjective difficulty of loops lower than modelers with lower process modeling knowledge. The findings additionally support the prediction that interactivity between model elements is positively related to the cognitive difficulty of reasoning. Our research contributes to both academic literature on the comprehension of process models and practitioner literature focusing on cognitive difficulties when using process models

Team Climate and Media Choice in Virtual Teams

As work teams become more distributed, effective computer-mediated communication is increasingly impacting their performance. This study investigates how team climate influences communication frequency among team members and their use of different communication media. Data were collected in two information systems courses offered at an Austrian university in which 50 student teams developed web-based applications and conducted usability tests. A team climate framework based on task and social orientation was used to assess the teams’ performance and communication patterns. We found that both task and social dimensions of team climate were positively related to higher communication frequency as well as objective and subjective performance. Among other things, the results suggest that a task-oriented climate is especially linked to the use of e-mail, while social orientation is linked to the use of face-to-face meetings. We also found differences in communication patterns and performance across four different types of team climates (fully functioning, cozy, cold, and dysfunctional). The results underscore the importance of both task and social dimensions for a team to perform well. Our study contributes to both the academic literature that investigates factors affecting media choice and the practitioner literature that examines how to manage virtual teamwork effectively

Exploring cognitive style and task-specific preferences for process representations

Process models describe someone's understanding of processes. Processes can be described using unstructured, semi-formal or diagrammatic representation forms. These representations are used in a variety of task settings, ranging from understanding processes to executing or improving processes, with the implicit assumption that the chosen representation form will be appropriate for all task settings. We explore the validity of this assumption by examining empirically the preference for different process representation forms depending on the task setting and cognitive style of the user. Based on data collected from 120 business school students, we show that preferences for process representation formats vary dependent on application purpose and cognitive styles of the participants. However, users consistently prefer diagrams over other representation formats. Our research informs a broader research agenda on task-specific applications of process modeling. We offer several recommendations for further research in this area

Process Innovation as Creative Problem-Solving: An Experimental Study of Textual Descriptions and Diagrams

The use of process models to support business analysts' idea-generation tasks has been a long-standing topic of interest in process improvement. We examine how two types of representations of organizational processes - textual and diagrammatic - assist analysts in developing innovative solutions to process-redesign tasks. The results of our study clarify the types of process-redesign ideas generated by analysts who work with text versus those who work with models. We find that the volume and originality of process-redesign ideas do not differ significantly but that appropriateness of ideas varies. We discuss the implications of these findings for research and practice in process improvement

Influence Factors for Customer Acceptance of Data-Driven Contracts in Insurance Ecosystems

Datafication offers several benefits to the insurance sector, but the success of data-driven insurance depends very much on customer acceptance. Thus, this study examines factors that influence customer acceptance of data-driven car and health insurance. These two types of data-driven insurance are based on fitness and driving data, both of which require access to sensor and geo-localization data. The results of an online study with 217 participants using advertisements for data-driven insurances showed that highlighting monetary incentives leads to a higher acceptance than highlighting health or safety incentives. Data-driven insurances allow for individualized tariffs, and accordingly, it is more likely that people who rate their driving skills above-average will take out a datadriven car insurance. Privacy concerns are another important influence factor. The findings demonstrate that customer acceptance of data-driven insurance can be influenced to some extent by framing decision-relevant information material