Why Cognitive Research Can’t
Be Left to Cognitive Scientists
jgrudin@microsoft.com
http://research.microsoft.com/~jgrudin
Cognitive Science and HCI
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1968-1972
1972-1973
1973-1976
1976-1977
1977-1981
1981-1983
1983-1986
1986-1989
1989-1991
1991-1998
1998-
BA, Math-Physics, Reed
MS, Mathematics, Purdue
Programmer, Wang Labs
Psychology Department, Stanford
UC San Diego (PhD, Cognitive Pych)
MRC Applied Psychology Unit
Software Engineer, Wang Labs
Member of Technical Staff, MCC
Professor, Aarhus
Professor of Inf. & CS, UC Irvine
Senior Researcher, Microsoft Research
Cognitive Science and HCI
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1968-1972
1972-1973
1973-1976
1976-1977
1977-1981
1981-1983
Tom Malone
George Furnas
Jeff Johnson
John Black
BA, Math-Physics, Reed
MS, Mathematics, Purdue
Programmer, Wang Labs
Psychology Department, Stanford
UC San Diego (PhD, Cognitive Pych)
MRC Applied Psychology Unit
Bob Glushko
Gary Perlman
Tom Erickson
Allen Cypher
Jim Hollan
Steve Draper
Ed Hutchins
Liam Bannon
Allan MacLean
Catherine Marshall
Nick Hammond
Phil Barnard…
Cognitive Science and HCI
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1968-1972
1972-1973
1973-1976
1976-1977
1977-1981
1981-1983
BA, Math-Physics, Reed
MS, Mathematics, Purdue
Programmer, Wang Labs
Psychology Department, Stanford
UC San Diego (PhD, Cognitive Pych)
MRC Applied Psychology Unit
Don Norman, UCSD
Dave Rumelhart, “”
Herb Clark, Stanford
Micha Pavel, Stanford
Gary Olson, Michigan Peter Polson, Col.
Judy Olson, Michigan John Black, Yale
Roger Schvaneveldt, New Mexico
Don Foss, Texas…
CHI’83 was overwhelmingly psychologists
Coming in on the Wave
Distributed
teams
Inter-organizational
Three Kinds of Computer User (60s-70s)
• Operators
(hands-on users of displays, printers, input devices)
• Programmers
(using flowcharts, paper coding sheets)
• Users of reports and other output
(reading text and viewing graphical output)
Two threads
of
humancomputer
interaction
research
The Receding Wave
• KLM and GOMS
• GUIs
• Bridging the islands
Few cognitive scientists are interested.
Stranded on the Beach
• Searching for shelter
• Cultivating new crops
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Capturing design rationale
Computer supported cooperative work
Ubiquitous and pervasive computing
Universal accessibility
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Cognitive Science and HCI
•
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•
•
•
•
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•
•
•
•
1968-1972
1972-1973
1973-1976
1976-1977
1977-1981
1981-1983
1983-1986
1986-1989
1989-1991
1991-1998
1998-
BA, Math-Physics, Reed
MS, Mathematics, Purdue
Programmer, Wang Labs
Psychology Department, Stanford
UC San Diego (PhD Cognitive Pych)
MRC Applied Psychology Unit
Software Engineer, Wang Labs
Member of Technical Staff, MCC
Professor, Aarhus
Professor of Inf. & CS, UC Irvine
Senior Researcher, Microsoft Research
Shifting Focus of Interface Development
Levels of Development
Levels:
Users:
1
2
Programmers
Specialists: EE/CS
3
End-users
4
Groups
HF&E & Psychology
Methods:
Benchmarks
Events:
Millisecs
& hours
Lab experiment
Secs
Mins
5
Hours
6
Organizations
Anthro & Management
Observation
Weeks & months
Generality
and
precision
High
Low
Evaluation
cost
Low
High
Opportunity (Seen From Outside)
• Some traditional foci of cognitive / IS research
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Decision making
Organization of information (printed or displayed)
Management of IT
Knowledge management
• Major expansion: direct hands-on use by everyone
From Few to Many
From Few to Many
Five Parts of Organizations
(Mintzberg, 1984)
Strategic
Apex
Technostructure
Middle
Line
Support
Staff
Operating Core
Executives, Managers, Individuals
Strategic
Apex
Middle
Line
Operating Core
Direct, Hands-On Technology Use
• 1980’s: “Managers don’t type.”
– Perin study of resistance by tech company managers
• 1990’s: Managers as late adopters
– CEO use rose from 21% (1989) to 76% (2002)
• 2000’s: Managers as early adopters
• Why the change?
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New features & applications useful to managers
Graphical interfaces made learning & use easier
Use by friends, colleagues, at home helped learning
Use by professionals & kids erased secretarial stigma (1993)
Young individual contributors became middle-aged managers
Old managers disappeared
Direct, Hands-On Technology Use
• 1980’s: “Managers don’t type.”
– Perin study of resistance by tech company managers
• 1990’s: Managers as late adopters
– CEO use rose from 21% (1989) to 76% (2002)
• 2000’s: Managers as early adopters
• Implications
– New process considerations for design, acquisition,
deployment
– New technology possibilities appear
– Old technology possibilities disappear
– Ways of using technology differ
Widely Distributed Applications
• Email
• Shared calendars
• Real-time communication & application sharing
• Shared workspaces
• Browsers
• IM?
• Desktop video?
• Vertical applications
Activity In Organizations
Strategic
Apex
Middle
Line
Operating Core
Activity In Organizations
Strategic
Apex
Middle
Line
Operating Core
Activity In Organizations
Strategic
Apex
Middle
Line
Operating Core
Activity In Organizations
Strategic
Apex
Middle
Line
Operating Core
Thank you…
jgrudin@microsoft.com
http://research.microsoft.com/~jgrudin
Going from Few to Many Hands-on Users
• Computers
• Automobiles
From
human-computer interaction
to
digitally mediated human interaction
From
focus on displays and controls
to
focus on traffic
Conventions and Conformity
Interaction  well-defined, predictable behaviors
to achieve greater efficiency or safety
Result: One set of behaviors?
– No, some groups don’t interact with each other
– No, some groups have different constraints