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Cognitive Aspects and HCI Design in Support of Survey Data Collection and Dissemination

Automating and computerizing data collection using computer-aided personal interviews (CAPI), computer-aided telephone interviews (CATI), and computerized self-administered questionnaires (CSAQ) have greatly facilitated survey data collection. However, computerization has also introduced new problems dealing with the use of the computer, the constraints of program logic, and the usability of the interface. In order to ensure reliable and valid data, the human-computer interface must be designed to match the flow of the interviewer process and the intervieweeÕs recall of information. New methods of interface design and powerful interface tools are available to aid in the generation of new interfaces for survey data collection.

Enabling users to benefit from government statistical databases requires much more than simply making them accessible. The staggering number of data tables and the complexity of terminology plus concepts makes effective use of statistical databases a challenge for novice as well as expert users.

The human/computer interface has become the focal point for both software development and applied research on the cognitive processes involved in users performing tasks on computers. On the one side, interface designers are interested in principles and guidelines that will help in specifying and implementing good user interfaces for everything from database entry and survey administration to accessing information on the World Wide Web (WWW). On the other side, researchers are interested in general principles informed by cognitive psychology as to how users search for information, navigate the interface, and make decisions based on the information found. This project has three prongs pertaining to three important issues facing the development of most human/computer interfaces: (1) the use of menus and the problem of navigation through databases and interfaces; (2) the use of maps and the problem of navigation through geographic databases; and (3) the use of data visualization tools and the problems of database query, search, and retrieval.

Participants:

Kent L. Norman, Department of Psychology

Walky Rivadeneira, Department of Psychology

Ben Shneiderman, Computer Science

Catherine Plaisant, UMIACS

Funding Agency: U. S. Bureau of the Census