User support: revealing structure instead of surface

Abstract

The development of different help systems and the application of numerous approaches to user support have shown (a) that end-users may encounter insuperably complex use situations, and (b) that it is possible to assist users significantly by implementing computerized help systems. There are many approaches to the realization of user support, varying from the use of natural language to user modelling. However, the current help systems seem to focus on relatively technical data processing issues, ignoring the organizational context in which the use takes place. It is asserted in this paper that it is relevant for users to perceive the organizational context and that it is possible to reflect the context in a support system. Representing the context in a support system is made possible by introducing a context database. A context database is parallel to the actual database and contains information about task flows, task-connected information objects and the like. Therefore the analysis of work and information systems has to be based on related areas. The areas of inquiry are (a) tasks, (b) job design, (c) organization of work, (d) computer applications and (e) information media. The following kinds of mappings can be incorporated within the context database: [organizational unit Ol]-T_person PI in job]-[job task Tl]-[task-connected information Il]-[task-connected information 12]-[job task T2]-[person in job P2]-[organizational unit O2], This type of chain (or parts of it) can then be visualized as context support.     

The process of introducing information technology

This paper outlines the strategies adopted by the psychologists and ergonomists of the HUSAT Research Group to help organizations learn about information technology and systematically review and plan its organizational ramifications. An essential point is that it is not enough to understand the technology; effective implementation demands the ability to establish organizational needs and to choose a form of technology which will meet them.

The paper examines three ways of designing systems. Firstly, a technology-led approach which leads to 'fire fighting' when the negative organizational effects become apparent. A second method has tried to compensate for this by involving users in the design process. Unfortunately by the time the users have come to terms with their new task and are able to make a contribution, the system has usually been designed.

The third method of design expressly seeks to give users the time and opportunity to learn how to contribute to design, by making the design process evolutionary; i.e. by building slowly from small systems to large ones and retaining the flexibility to change. Within this concept user learning and adaptation is promoted by pilot systems, user design exercises, user support and evaluation procedures. It is only by these methods that users can be given the confidence and knowledge to exploit the potential of the new technology.     

Determinants of user participation: a Finnish survey

The relationship between user participation and information systems success has intrigued researchers for two decades. Despite this history there is minimal research on the antecedents of user participation. The tenet of the present paper is that the conditions of user participation are essentially changing. Especially, the European tradition of user participation has focused on blue collar workers rather than professionals and managers. Users are normally assumed to be computer illiterate. The North American tradition has almost exclusively focused on the impact of user participation on information systems success. The present paper examined the significance of organizational level of users, their task variety and computer experience as determinants of user participation including age, gender, education, computer training, organizational tenure and job tenure as control variables. The three determinants were found to have a significant positive effect on user participation, computer experience emerging as the most dominant factor. Gender, education and computer training were discovered to have significant effects mediated by organizational level, task variety and computer experience.     

The process of introducing information technology

Abstract

This paper outlines the strategies adopted by the psychologists and ergonomists of the HUSAT Research Group to help organizations learn about information technology and systematically review and plan its organizational ramifications. An essential point is that it is not enough to understand the technology; effective implementation demands the ability to establish organizational needs and to choose a form of technology which will meet them.

The paper examines three ways of designing systems. Firstly, a technology-led approach which leads to 'fire fighting' when the negative organizational effects become apparent. A second method has tried to compensate for this by involving users in the design process. Unfortunately by the time the users have come to terms with their new task and are able to make a contribution, the system has usually been designed.

The third method of design expressly seeks to give users the time and opportunity to learn how to contribute to design, by making the design process evolutionary; i.e. by building slowly from small systems to large ones and retaining the flexibility to change. Within this concept user learning and adaptation is promoted by pilot systems, user design exercises, user support and evaluation procedures. It is only by these methods that users can be given the confidence and knowledge to exploit the potential of the new technology.     

Modeling context-aware and intention-aware in-car infotainment systems

It is fundamental to understand users’ intentions to support them when operating a computer system with a dynamically varying set of functions, e.g., within an in-car infotainment system. The system needs to have sufficient information about its own and the user’s context to predict those intentions. Although the development of current in-car infotainment systems is already model-based, explicitly gathering and modeling contextual information and user intentions is currently not supported. However, manually creating software that understands the current context and predicts user intentions is complex, error-prone and expensive. Model-based development can help in overcoming these issues. In this paper, we present an approach for modeling a user’s intention based on Bayesian networks. We support developers of in-car infotainment systems by providing means to model possible user intentions according to the current context. We further allow modeling of user preferences and show how the modeled intentions may change during run-time as a result of the user’s behavior. We demonstrate feasibility of our approach using an industrial case study of an intention-aware in-car infotainment system. Finally, we show how modeling of contextual information and modeling user intentions can be combined by using model transformation.     

Browsing databases with constraint hierarchies

Electronic markets rely on database technology for efficient search for products, services, customers, and trading partners. Yet, database technology was not designed to build electronic markets, and it often fails to fully support market search activities. Market search often requires browsing and incremental search, attribute and constraint tradeoffs, approximate matches, and incorporation of user and task characteristics into searches. None of these requirements are supported directly by the database technology. Three major extensions to database technology are proposed to effectively support electronic markets. First, incremental search techniques are proposed to allow users to browse databases, and to move from solution to solution by following attribute and constraint tradeoffs. These techniques require systems to have some knowledge of similarity, distance, direction, and tradeoffs. Second, typing and stereotyping techniques are introduced to allow users to relate task and user characteristics to product attributes. These techniques require integration of typing systems with database searches. Third, a comprehensive search strategy is developed that combines incremental search and stereotyping techniques by utilizing product, task, and user ontologies.     

Effects of an ontology display with history representation on organizational memory information systems

Ontologies, as a possible element of organizational memory information systems, appear to support organizational learning. Ontology tools can be used to share knowledge among the members of an organization. However, current ontology-viewing user interfaces of ontology tools do not fully support organizational learning, because most of them lack proper history representation in their display. In this study, a conceptual model was developed that emphasized the role of ontology in the organizational learning cycle and explored the integration of history representation in the ontology display. Based on the experimental results from a split-plot design with 30 participants, two conclusions were derived: first, appropriately selected history representations in the ontology display help users to identify changes in the ontologies; and second, compatibility between types of ontology display and history representation is more important than ontology display and history representation in themselves.     

Effects of an ontology display with history representation on organizational memory information systems

Ontologies, as a possible element of organizational memory information systems, appear to support organizational learning. Ontology tools can be used to share knowledge among the members of an organization. However, current ontology-viewing user interfaces of ontology tools do not fully support organizational learning, because most of them lack proper history representation in their display. In this study, a conceptual model was developed that emphasized the role of ontology in the organizational learning cycle and explored the integration of history representation in the ontology display. Based on the experimental results from a split-plot design with 30 participants, two conclusions were derived: first, appropriately selected history representations in the ontology display help users to identify changes in the ontologies; and second, compatibility between types of ontology display and history representation is more important than ontology display and history representation in themselves.     

An Interface Agent Approach to Personalize Users' Interaction with Databases

Making queries to a database system through a computer application can become a repetitive and time-consuming task for those users who generally make similar queries to get the information they need to work with. We believe that interface agents could help these users by personalizing the query-making and information retrieval tasks. Interface agents are characterized by their ability to learn users' interests in a given domain and to help them by making suggestions or by executing tasks on their behalf. Having this purpose in mind we have developed an agent, named QueryGuesser, to assist users of computer applications in which retrieving information from a database is a key task. This agent observes a user's behavior while he is working with the database and builds the user's profile. Then, QueryGuesser uses this profile to suggest the execution of queries according to the user's habits and interests, and to provide the user information relevant to him by making time-demanding queries in advance or by monitoring the events and operations occurring in the database system. In this way, the interaction between database users and databases becomes personalized while it is enhanced.     

Why to gamify performance management? Consequences of user engagement in gamification

Gamification offers one of the most promising solutions for information technology (IT) managers to innovate performance management systems. Yet, evidence on its benefits is limited, and IT managers are left without a clear guidance on why to implement it. To solve the problem, this article shows the benefits of gamification for overall job performance and the intermediating mechanisms through which it exercises its advantageous effects. It is theorized that employees’ engagement in gamification favorably alters their cognitions, transferring their effect onto employee attitudes and behaviors in the workplace. First, user engagement in gamification alters cognitions about the performance management system, making employees perceive justice, which, in turn, affects their satisfaction with the performance system. Second, user engagement in gamification alters cognitions about the job, influencing the perceptions of job stressors that affect job satisfaction. Third, user engagement in gamification alters cognitions about the organization, making employees perceive organizational support, which translates into higher organizational commitment. The improved cognitions then transfer their beneficial effect onto overall job performance as justice is found to exercise a mediating effect. The findings from 268 employees in a human resource service organization support the hypotheses and provide concrete evidence for the benefits of gamification in performance management.     

Seeking and providing assistance while learning to use information systems

Throughout their lives, people are faced with various learning situations, for example when they learn how to use new software, services or information systems. However, research in the field of Interactive Learning Environments shows that learners needing assistance do not systematically seek or use help, even when it is available. The aim of the present study is to explore the role of some factors from research in Interactive Learning Environments in another situation: using a new technology not as a means of acquiring knowledge but to realize a specific task. Firstly, we present the three factors included in this study (1) the role of the content of assistance, namely operative vs. function-oriented help; (2) the role of the user’s prior knowledge; (3) the role of the trigger of assistance, i.e. help provided after the user’s request vs. help provided by the system. In this latter case, it is necessary to detect the user’s difficulties. On the basis of research on problem-solving, we list behavioral criteria expressing the user’s difficulties. Then, we present two experiments that use “real” technologies developed by a large company and tested by “real” users. The results showed that (1) even when participants had reached an impasse, most of them never sought assistance, (2) operative assistance that was automatically provided by the system was effective for novice users, and (3) function-oriented help that was automatically provided by the system was effective for expert users. Assistance can support deadlock awareness and can also focus on deadlock solving by guiding task. Assistance must be adapted to prior knowledge, progress and goals of learners to improve learning.     

Designing personal attentive user interfaces in the mobile public safety domain

In the mobile computing environment, there is a need to adapt the information and service provision to the momentary attentive state of the user, operational requirements and usage context. This paper proposes to design personal attentive user interfaces (PAUI) for which the content and style of information presentation is based on models of relevant cognitive, task, context and user aspects. Using the police work environment as the application domain, relevant attributes of these aspects are identified based on literature and domain analyses. We present a user-centered design (UCD) method for the iterative development and validation of the proposed PAUI. Application of this approach provided requirements for (1) adaptation to users’ attentive state, (2) notification, (3) information processing and task switching support and (4) user modeling. We aim at refining and validating the models and requirements through continuing empirical evaluation.     

The impact of DSS on organizational communication

There is some controversy in the MIS literature concerning the potential impact of computer systems on interpersonal communication in organizations. Generally, MIS researchers have found that effective communication between users and designers is an important factor in determining user satisfaction and MIS success.Recently, however, Naylor [8] has argued that decision support systems (DSS) may isolate managers from interaction with others. This is in marked contrast to the contentions of Wagner [16] and Huber [6] that DSS may lead to more effective managerial communication.We would argue that DSS encourage communication for several reasons: adaptive DSS development requires continued manager-analyst interaction; DSS-based decisions often require groups of managers; and there is a greater need for human information processing in a DSS environment.This paper reports the results of a study of the relationships between DSS usage and organizational communications. It was found that users in three different categories (managers, financial or planning analysts (FPAs), and “others”) felt that DSS usage encouraged communication. Also, significant positive relationships were found between increased communication and overall satisfaction with the DSS for all three groups. Finally, for managers and FPAs, significant positive relationships were found between increased communication and satisfaction with the DSS in decision-making activities.     

Utilizing contextual ontological user profiles for personalized recommendations

As users may have different needs in different situations and contexts, it is increasingly important to consider user context data when filtering information. In the field of web personalization and recommender systems, most of the studies have focused on the process of modelling user profiles and the personalization process in order to provide personalized services to the user, but not on contextualized services. Rather limited attention has been paid to investigate how to discover, model, exploit and integrate context information in personalization systems in a generic way. In this paper, we aim at providing a novel model to build, exploit and integrate context information with a web personalization system. A context-aware personalization system (CAPS) is developed which is able to model and build contextual and personalized ontological user profiles based on the user’s interests and context information. These profiles are then exploited in order to infer and provide contextual recommendations to users. The methods and system developed are evaluated through a user study which shows that considering context information in web personalization systems can provide more effective personalization services and offer better recommendations to users.     

Query language approach based on the deductive object-oriented database paradigm

The integration of data-oriented (structural), behavioral and deductive aspects is necessary in next generation information systems. The deductive object-oriented database paradigm offers a very promising starting point for the implementation of these kinds of information systems. So far in the context of this paradigm a big problem has been the lack of a query language suitable to an ordinary end user. Typically in existing proposals for deductive object-oriented databases the user has to master well both logic-based rule formulation and object-oriented programming. In this paper we introduce a set of high-level querying primitives which increases the degree of declarativeness compared to the deductive object-oriented query languages proposed so far. In terms of these primitives it is possible to offer for end users such application-specific concepts and structures whose interpretation is obvious to users but whose specification is too demanding for them. By combining these primitives in queries the user can integrate data-oriented, behavioral and deductive aspects with each other in a concept-oriented way. Our query language approach is based on the incorporation of deductive aspects to object-orientation. Among others this means that deductive aspects of objects are inherited in the specialization/generalization hierarchy like any other properties of objects.     

Impact of the quality of information products on information system users' job satisfaction: an empirical investigation

Abstract. In recent years, researchers and practitioners have paid increasing attention to the effects of information systems on work-related outcomes. The purpose of the reported research is to investigate the influence of information systems on work-related outcomes. A model is derived from prior research that considers direct effects of quality of information product on job satisfaction along with indirect effects through role conflict and role ambiguity. Results from a field study of 368 users indicated that quality of information product has a positive relationship with job satisfaction. However, role ambiguity and role conflict mediated this relationship. A causal path model identified that quality of information product influenced job satisfaction through role conflict and role ambiguity. Role conflict and role ambiguity fully mediated the relationship between quality of information product and job satisfaction. The results identify the role of information systems in influencing users' work related outcomes. In view of the importance of job satisfaction in motivating employees, IS designers and researchers should pay greater attention to the need for designing quality systems that not only meet their primary information delivery objectives, but also take into account the task and organizational design issues that may influence the work environment of users.     

The role of context in decision making: some implications for database design

With increasing integration of computer systems through local and wide area communication networks, there exists the capability in many organizations to retrieve information from databases to support ad hoc decision making by many different users. The idea that information is a corporate resource is now something more than business school hype. But the implications of sharing data are only just dawning on the corporate mind. How do managers interpret data? Where decision making is carried out by several people, perhaps in several different locations for different purposes the same data is used in multiple decision contexts. This paper explores the role of context as a way of adding value to information from databases. Two types of context are defined and discussed in relation to some examples of decisions where the role of context is vital. These examples are taken from some empirical research conducted with users of spatial decision support systems. Here the use of background information on maps, for example roads, add context to maps which otherwise simply display statistical data. The paper concludes by suggesting a model of context based on the notion that context acts as a filter between user and database.     

Supporting user views

Any emerging standard for object-oriented database systems must include a rich view support mechanism. A user view is a customized window into an application domain. It may be thought of as a simplifying abstraction which hides information that is not accessible to, needed or wanted by a particular user. Because they limit the information available from a given perspective, most views allow read-only access to a database. In this paper it is asserted that by generalizing object identity to include attributes and views - many view updates are made possible. An extended object structure and several categories of view transformation are also presented which allow all user views to be modeled within a single polymorphic database schema.