Contextual Inquiry Lecture #3 - January 27th, 2009 213: User Interface Design and Development

Contextual Inquiry

Lecture #3 - January 27th, 2009

213: User Interface Design and Development

Today’s Outline

1) Introduction to CI

2) Principles of CI

3) Work Models

4) Assignments

Contextual Inquiry

“Contextual Design makes data gathering from the customer the base criterion for deciding what the system should do…”

“The core premise of Contextual Inquiry is very simple: go where the customer works, observe the customer as he or she works, and talk to the customer about the work. Do that, and you can’t help but gain a better understanding of your customer.”

Source: Beyer and Holtzblatt, Contextual Design

Making Change Palatable

“[S]ystems must match the user’s model closely enough that the user can make the transition…”

Even if a new technology is advantageous, it will not be adopted if it is too disruptive to current practice

Example of the slow transition from typewriters to word processors

Design from Data

“The user is not like us…”

We need data to understand the user and his/her work

Marketing only provides a high-level business case, not specific details about their current practice

Benefits of Data

Requires design team to agree on common observations and their representation

Reveals hidden aspects of work, that may be implicit in the user’s understanding

Contextual Inquiry is a method for gathering and representing data about the user and his/her work

Principles of CI

CONTEXT - See the work where it unfolds

PARTNERSHIP - Make yourself and the user collaborators in understanding the work

INTERPRETATION - Assigning meaning to design team’s observations

FOCUS - Shared starting point, orienting the team and user towards a common goal


Context

Summary vs. Ongoing Experience

Retrospective accounts are often summaries

“I got to work, checked my email and had a cup

of coffee”

By being present in the time and place of

activity, we can access much richer data from

ongoing activities

“I got to work, looked over my email, answered

messages from my boss, decided to have some

coffee, walked to the coffee machine, found

there was no coffee, so I made coffee…

Abstract vs. Concrete Data

Humans also have a tendency to abstract - save

time, and convey points they feel are

important

This reduces amount and quality of data in CI

Leaning back, Staring at the ceiling are clues

that user is providing abstract description

Leaning forward, Point at artifacts are being

concrete

Focus on real tasks and artifacts

Master / Apprentice Model

You are the Apprentice; the Customer is the

Master - keeps investigator humble, and

customer in charge

Investigator is not afraid to ask questions

Teaching while doing means user doesn’t have to

think in advance what to convey

Allows discovery of subtle details, which may

be overlooked in “canned” discussion

Reduces need for a formal set of interview

questions

Being a Good “Apprentice”

Be a keen observer

Don’t be afraid to ask questions

Maintain an attitude of inquiry and learning

Admire the Master as an expert in his/her work

Aspire to see the World as they do

Adapted from Jake Wobbrock

Withdrawal and Return

The researcher observes something that he/she would like to dig deeper about

“Is there a reason you paused there?”

The researcher asks about this, and the pair withdraw momentarily from the task at hand

The pair discuss the researcher’s question

After, participant returns to the task at hand


What to Look For

Workarounds

Mismatch between what people say and do

Offhand, under the breath comments

Sighs

Rolling of eyes

Confessions


Vet your Design Ideas

CI is also a fine time to get initial feedback on design ideas

“If you had a technology that did X, would that solve this problem?”

Designers will want to do this anyway, so might as well support it

Users will quickly understand the intent of your suggestion, and will be able to provide direct feedback

This will also demonstrate your understanding of the problem, providing opportunity for brainstorming and/or clarification

Avoid other Relationships

Interviewer / Interviewee - Not based on context or ongoing activities

Expert / Novice - You are not the expert in the user’s work, they are!

Guest / Host - You shouldn’t be too afraid of asking the wrong question

Interpretation

Check your Interpretations

It is good to check your interpretations to make sure they are accurate

“I saw you just do X. Is that because of Y?”

“I believe X. Is that correct?”

As long as you check your interpretations in-context, participants will respond accurately

Outside of context, they may be more inclined to agree or answer in generalities rather than specifics


Stages of a Contextual Interview

Interview / Warm Up

Transition

Observe Behavior

Share Interpretation

Refine Interpretation

Wrap-up


Focus

Establish a Focus

Establishing a project focus keeps project team aligned towards relevant questionsAsking the customer about whether they bring an umbrella to work probably wouldn’t be helpful for designing a word processor

Often different team members will have a slightly different focus based on their experience and interests

Differences are reconciled during group interpretation

7 Ways to Screw up a CI

Not being inquisitive/nosy enough

Overly disrupting the task

Turning it into a regular interview

Failing to respect your participants

Failing to observe and take good notes

Focusing on the wrong details

Slipping into abstractionAdapted from Jake Wobbrock

Work Models

Group Interpretation

A maximum of 48 hours after the interview, group interpretation is conducted

Focusing on one interview at a time, each design team member is allowed to ask questions of the interviewer

The outputs of this meeting are:

A sequence of notes, including observations, questions, design ideas and breakdowns, indexed by user number (important to keep anonymous)

A set of work models (see following)

Roles during Group Interpretation

Interviewer - conducted the interview

Work Modelers - generate work models

Recorder - take notes

Moderator - run the session

Participants - ask questions, make observations

Rat-hole Watcher - avoids breaking protocol or wasting time

Work Models

Work models are a graphical way of representing the result of a CI

Generated during group interpretation session, after primary data collection

A concrete set of deliverables allowing the design team to agree upon a shared understanding and representation

Distills the important contextual aspects of the design scenario

Five Kinds of Work Models

FLOW - Direction of communication and

coordination

SEQUENCE - Detailed sequence of work steps

ARTIFACT - Physical objects that support the

work

CULTURE - External influences

PHYSICAL - Layout of the work environment


Flow Model

Focuses on the roles of different users, and how they communicate and coordinate to get work done

Each flow model is generated from a specific individual perspective

Includes the places where communication happens, the artifacts used for communication, and breakdowns in communication that negatively impact work

Flow Model: Secretary


Flow Model: Documentation Writer


Sequence Model

“Low-level, step-by-step information on how work is actually done"

Includes the intent behind the action, the trigger that led the user to this action, and breakdowns that create problems

Captured at level of detail appropriate for focus of the design team

Sequence Model: E-mail Triage


Artifact Model

“An artifact model is a drawing or photocopy of the artifact, complete with any handwritten notes”

Documents physical artifacts used in work

During the CI, interviewers should inquire into the structure, content, presentation and usage of the artifact, as well as any breakdowns in its current use

Artifact Model: Personal Calender


Cultural Model

“Work takes place in a culture, which defines expectations, desires, policies, values, and the whole approach people take to work”

Revealed in the language used to describe work, the tone of the place, the policies, and the influence of the overall organization

Influencers are the individuals, formal groups or abstract principles that influence the work of specific people

Cultural Model: Developer


Physical Model

Documents the physical environment where work happens

Includes the organization of space, the grouping of people, and their movement in the space

Focuses on aspects relevant to the work / focus, and not on complete fidelity

Physical Model: Computer Lab


Affinity Diagrams

Affinity Diagrams are generated during group

session

Each observation/idea/note is copied to a

post-it

Notes are hierarchically organized into

themes, based on the focus of the project

Usually done in a chaotic fashion, with design

team members running back and forth with

post-its and yelling ideas to each other

Source:http://interactivecalendar.pbwiki.com/Affinity+Diagram

Consolidating Work Models

Consolidating models across different users

and interviews allows the team to see

patterns

Some observations may be missed - by

consolidating several interviews, we can

achieve better coverage

Reduces likelihood of bias by one

idiosyncratic user or interview

Only done for important and/or relevant

models

Example: Consolidating the Flow Model

Select 6-9 flow models

List responsibilities and roles of each person, group and place

Group similar roles, provide a generic name

List the abstracted responsibilities for each

List the abstracted communications and artifacts used between

each

Include any observed breakdowns

Go back to individual flow models, and include any important

roles, responsibilities or flows not covered

Consolidating Work Models

Model Group Abstract

Physical Roles Responsibilities, Communications, Breakdowns

Sequence Tasks Triggers, Activities, Intents

Artifact Roles Parts, Structure, Intent, Usage

Physical Work Spaces Places, Structure, Movement Patterns

Cultural Influencers Influences

Assignments

Assignment 0: Focus

Form a Group (2-4 people)

Choose a Project Focus

Identify User / Stakeholder categories

Identify Project Mentor(s)

Deadline is 2/2 at 11:59PM

More details on course home page

Will take a straw poll in the next class

Project Topics

1) Social Media for California Farmers

2) Health Records for Migrant Workers

3) Information, Communications & Coffee

4) Information and Training for Homeless

5) Squash & Vine

6) Meta-Mouse for Education

7) Improved Data Management for Health

8) Kuali Student Project

Assignment 1: Observation

Conduct 2-5 Contextual Interviews

Make an Affinity Diagram

Generate Five Work Models

Generate Initial Scenarios and Personas

Write it up and turn it in!

Deadline is 2/16 at 11:59PM

More details on course home page

In-class Exercise

FOCUS: You are enlisted to develop an improved tool for giving class presentations

Who are your users?

Where is the workplace?

During the next class, I will be your interview subject. Come prepared to conduct a contextual interview, and to take notes (bring index cards or a small notepad)

For Next Time

We will start with an in-class

contextual interview - be

prepared!

Start working on Assignments 0 and

1

Readings about Scenarios and

Personas for next week