Private Camera Conversation: a new method for eliciting user responses?

This paper discusses a new method called Private Camera Conversation. This method can be used to elicit user opinions on various subjects like their use of products. Initial impressions of the method are given on the basis of three small studies in which the method was employed. The method has not yet been validated and compared with existing human factors methods. This study reports the first findings of the application of the method. With Private Camera Conversation people are invited to talk about a particular topic in private to a video camera. The participants themselves decide when they want to start and when they want to stop the recording session. Initial impressions arc that the method has potential benefits for eliciting rich and useful responses even with respect to 'personal' issues. The Private Camera Conversation method seems particularly suitable for obtaining information about the social context in which products are used and about qualitative aspects of product use. The method is inviting and entertaining for participants and easy and effective to carry out. Optimal exploitation of the method has to be realized through further development. We hope this article will be a catalyst for further research.