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Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction1 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Imran Hussain
University of Management and Technology (UMT)
Lecture 22
User Modeling
Virtual University
Human-Computer Interaction
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction2 © Imran Hussain | UMT
In the Last Lecture
• Qualitative Research Techniques– Conducting ethnographic field studies
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction3 © Imran Hussain | UMT
In Today’s Lecture …
• Personas
• Goals
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction4 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Modeling
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction5 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Why Model?
• Used extensively in design, development and sciences
• Represent complex structures and relationships
• Have to make sense of unstructured, raw data
• Good models– Emphasize features of structures or relationships they represent– De-emphasize less significant details
• Create models based on patterns in data– E.g., physicists on the atom
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction6 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Usage Patterns
Goals Personas
Sets of observed behaviors that categorize
modes of use
Research Modeling
Use ethnographic research techniques to obtain qualitative data:• user observation• contextual interviews
Specific and general desired outcomes of
using the product
Qualitative Data
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction7 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Moving from Research to Modeling
• Need to synthesize patterns
• This leads to the systematic construction of patterns in interaction– Matching
• Behaviors• Mental models• Goals of users
• Personas provide this formalization
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction8 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction9 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas
• A precise descriptive model of the user– What he wishes to accomplish? and why?
– A.k.a. user models
• Personas based on motivations and behaviors of real people
• Personas based on behavioral data gathered from actual users through ethnographic interviews
• When to create– Discovered during Research phase
– Formalized during Modeling phase
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction10 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Strengths of Personas
• How do you successfully accommodate a variety of users?
• Do not design for everyone!
• Different needs (e.g., a car for everyone’s needs)– Person A (Minivan)– Person B (Pickup)– Person C (Sports Car)
• Design for specific types of individuals with specific needs
• These users should represent a larger set of users
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction11 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Strengths of Personas
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction12 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Strengths of Personas
• Personas are a tool for– Understanding user needs
– Differentiating between types of users
– Prioritizing users
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction13 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction14 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Strengths of Personas
• Determine what a product should do and how it should behave
• Communicate with stakeholders, developers and designers– Common language for discussing design decisions
• Build consensus and commitment to design– Common understanding through narrative structures
• Measure the design’s effectiveness– Can be tested on personas
• Contribute to other product-related efforts– Sales, marketing planning, business strategies
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction15 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas and User-Centered Design
• Personas resolve 3 user-centered issues:– The elastic user
– Self-referential design
– Design edge cases
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction16 © Imran Hussain | UMT
The Elastic User
• The term user causes imprecision
• During design decisions user becomes ‘elastic’– Accommodating, computer-literate
– Unsophisticated first-time user
• Persons not elastic and represent real user needs
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction17 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Self-referential Design
• Developers’ mental model, skills, goals, motivations projected onto product design
• Manifested by a ‘cool’ product
• Not understood by users
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction18 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Design Edge Cases
• What could possibly happen, but probably never will
• Personas provide reality check
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction19 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas Based on Research
• Personas synthesized from data
• Primary source of data – Ethnographic interviews, contextual inquiry
• Supplemental sources of data– Interviews with users outside their use context– Information about users supplied by stakeholders and SMEs– Market research data (focus groups, surveys)– Market segmentation models– Data from literature reviews
• Every detail in personas should be traceable– From user quotes, observed behaviors
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction20 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas Represented as Individuals
• Personas are user models represented as specific, individual humans– Represented as specific individuals– Not actual people, but synthesized
• Engage empathy of development team towards human target of design
• Allow designers and developers to role play in scenarios
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction21 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas Represent Classes of Users in Context
• Personas identify usage patterns– Usage patterns are behavior patterns regarding the use of a particular product
• Patterns along with work/life-related roles define personas as user archetypes (archetype: an original model or pattern of which all things of the same type are representations or copies)
• Personas a.k.a. composite user archetypes– Composites assembled by clustering related usage patterns across individuals
• Personas and reuse– Personas context-specific
• Cannot be reused across products
• Archetypes vs. stereotypes– Stereotypes antithesis of personas
• Reflect biases of designer biases
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction22 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas Explore Ranges of Behavior
• Personas do not establish an average user– Identifies different kinds of behavior in form of ranges
• Designers must collect a cast (collection) of personas associated with a product
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction23 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas have Motivations
• Humans have emotions
• Personas capture motivations in the form of goals– Identify usage patterns
– Identify why behaviors exist
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction24 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas vs. User Roles
• A.k.a. role models
• User roles and user profiles– both describe relationship of users to products
• User roles are– an abstraction
– A defined relationship between class of users and their problems
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction25 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Problems with User Roles
• More difficult to identify relationships in the abstract
• Focus on tasks, neglect goals as organizing principle
• Cannot be used as a coherent tool for communication and development
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction26 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas vs. User Profiles
• User profile– Usually a ‘brief biographical sketch’
• Name• Demographic data• Fictional paragraph
• Personas derived from ethnographic data
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction27 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Personas vs. Market Segments
• Market segments– Based on demographics and distribution channels
• Personas– User behavior and goals
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction28 © Imran Hussain | UMT
User Personas vs. Non-user Personas
• Product definition error is to target people who review, purchase or administer the product
• ‘IT Managers’ better served if real end user served
• Cater for non-user personas where necessary– Enterprise systems
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction29 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Goals
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction30 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Goals and Personas
• Personas contain sets of behaviors
• Goals drive behaviors
• Personas without goals– Communication tool [useful]
– Design tool [useless]
• Goals should determine functions of product
• Function and Behavior of Product must address Goals via Tasks
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction31 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Goals Motivate Usage Patterns
• Goals motivate people to behave in a certain way
• Goals provide answer to– Why personas use a product?
– How personas desire to use a product?
• Goals serve as shorthand (in designer’s mind) for complex behaviors
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction32 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Goals Must Be Inferred from Qualitative Data
• Can’t ask a person what his goals are directly– He can’t articulate them
– He won’t be accurate
– He won’t be honest
• Goals constructed from:– Observed behaviors
– Answers to questions
– Non-verbal cues
– Clues from environment
• Goals expressed succinctly– Each goal expressed as a single sentence
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction33 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Types of Goals …
• User Goals
• Non-User Goals
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction34 © Imran Hussain | UMT
User Goals …
• Life goals
• Experience Goals
• End Goals
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction35 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Life Goals
• Reflect personal aspirations of user
• Go beyond the context of product being designed
• Examples– Be the best at what I do– Get onto the fast track and win that big promotion– Learn all there is to know about this field– Be a paragon of ethics, modesty and trust
• Not directly related to design of interface
• Addressing life goals creates fanatically loyal users
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction36 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Experience Goals
• Product-related (general)
• How someone wants to feel when using a product
• People desire to be treated with dignity and respect and supported
• Examples– Don’t feel stupid
– Don’t make mistakes
– Feel competent and confident
– Have fun
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction37 © Imran Hussain | UMT
End Goals
• Product-related (specific)
• Expectation’s of the tangible outcomes of using a product
• Examples– Find the best price
– Finalize the press release
– Process the customer’s order
– Create a numerical model of the business
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction38 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Combining End Goals and Experience Goals
• End goals have more appeal to– Business people
– Programmers
• Most products satisfy end goals and not the experience goals
• Satisfying only end goals users not happy
• Satisfying only experience goals product becomes a toy
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction39 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Non-User Goals
• Must be considered, but not at expense of user goals
• Types …– Customer Goals
– Corporate Goals
– Technical Goals
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction40 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Customer Goals
• Consumer products – Concerned about happiness and safety (parents, relatives, friends)
• Enterprise products– Concerned about security, ease of maintenance, ease of customization
(IT managers)
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction41 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Corporate Goals
• Businesses and organizations have goals for product
• Enable designers to remain focused
• Examples– Increase profit
– Increase market share
– Defeat the competition
– Use resources more efficiently
– Offer more products or services
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction42 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Technical Goals
• Programmer’s goals
• Ease task of software creation
• Often take precedence over user’s goals
• Examples– Save memory– Run in a browser– Safeguard data integrity– Increase program execution efficiency– Use “cool” technology or features– Maintain consistency across platforms
• Users do not care about technical goals (e.g., type of databases used)
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction43 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Successful Products Meet User Goals First
• Good products– Serve a purpose in a context for people
– Key tool in designing is personas
– Personas are specific people working towards specific purposes (goals)
• Goals of real people using product are always more important than:– A corporation
– IT manager
• Users will try to meet business goals– But not at expense of their dignity
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction44 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Meeting user goals
• Successful products meet user goals• Don’t make me (user) think
– i.e. don’t make em’ feel stupid
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction45 © Imran Hussain | UMT
A user’s most important goal is always to retain his human dignity
(Don’t make the user feel stupid)
Today’s digital products degrade human beings
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction46 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Constructing Personas
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction47 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Constructing Personas
• Personas derived from patterns observed during interviews and observations
• Well-developed personas include information about– Goals– Attitudes– Work or activity flow– Typical workday– Use environment– Skills and skill levels– Current solutions and frustrations– Relevant relationships with others
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction48 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Process for Constructing Personas …
1. Revisit the persona hypothesis.
2. Map interview subjects to behavioral variables.
3. Identify significant behavior patterns.
4. Synthesize characteristics and relevant goals.
5. Check for completeness.
6. Develop narratives.
7. Designate persona types.
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction49 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Revisit the persona hypothesis
• Compare patterns in data with assumptions in persona hypothesis
• List behavioral variables
• Behavioral variables in enterprise applications related to job roles– 15 to 30 behavioral variables per role
• Modify assumptions if at variance with data
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction50 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Map interview subjects to behavioral variables
• Map each interviewee against each applicable variable range
• Place interviewee on a range according to a scale
• Clusters indicate behavior patterns
• Behavioral range a.k.a. behavioral axis
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction51 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Map interview subjects to behavioral variables
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction52 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Identify significant behavior patterns
• Note clusters of subjects across multiple ranges
• Set of interviewees that cluster in 6-8 variables possibly represent a persona based on pattern
• May have 2-3 such patterns
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction53 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Synthesize relevant characteristics and relevant goals
• Synthesize details from data
• List characteristics of behavior in brief bullet points
• Add little description of personalities
• Only first and last names of persona should be fictional
• Add some demographic info– E.g., age, location, income
• From this point on, refer to persona by assigned name
• List goals by inference from behavior data
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction54 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Check for completeness
• Check persona characteristics and goals for any gaps
• Eliminate redundancies– E.g., 2 personas only varying in location
– Each persona must vary from another in at least one behavior
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction55 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Constructing Personas
• Well-developed personas include information about– Goals– Attitudes– Work or activity flow– Typical workday– Use environment– Skills and skill levels– Current solutions and frustrations– Relevant relationships with others
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction56 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Develop narratives
• Introduce third person narrative to convey persona’s attitudes, needs and problems
• Persona narrative < 1-2 pages
• Narrative– Introduces persona in terms of job or lifestyle
– Sketches a day in his life, including interests and concerns related to product
• Choose photographs of persona
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction57 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Designate persona types
• Each interface designed for single, primary persona
• Prioritize personas
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction58 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction59 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction60 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Persona types
• Primary– Primary target for design of interface
• Secondary– Secondary personas per interface: 0 to 2
• Supplemental
• Customer
• Served
• Negative
Virtual University - Human Computer Interaction61 © Imran Hussain | UMT
Process for Constructing Personas
1. Revisit the persona hypothesis.
2. Map interview subjects to behavioral variables.
3. Identify significant behavior patterns.
4. Synthesize characteristics and relevant goals.
5. Check for completeness.
6. Develop narratives.
7. Designate persona types.