Elisabeth M.A.G. van Dijk

LEMtool: measuring emotions in visual interfaces

In this paper the development process and validation of the LEMtool (Layered Emotion Measurement tool) are described. The LEMtool consists of eight images that display a cartoon figure expressing four positive and four negative emotions using facial expressions and body postures. The instrument can be used during interaction with a visual interface, such as a website, and allows participants to select elements of the interface that elicit a certain emotion. The images of the cartoon figure were submitted to a validation study, in which participants rated the recognizability of the images as specific emotions. All images were found to be recognizable above chance level. In another study, the LEMtool was used to assess visual appeal judgements of a number of web pages. The LEMtool ratings were supported by visual appeal ratings of web pages both for very brief (50 milliseconds) and for long (free-viewing) stimulus exposures. Furthermore, the instrument provided insight into the elements of the web pages that elicited the emotional responses.

Measuring enjoyment of an interactive museum experience

Museums are increasingly being equipped with interactive technology. The main goal of using technology is to improve the museum-going experience of visitors. In this paper, we present the results of a study with an electronic quest through a museum aimed at children in the age of 10-12. We wanted to find out whether personalization of the quest effects enjoyment. For this purpose we involved an interactive multi-touch table in the experiment, which also offered the opportunity to add the element of collaboration. We compared a group that did the original non-personalized quest with a group that did the personalized quest. This last group interacted with the multi-touch table to personalize the quest before they started on it. No significant differences were found between the experimental groups. We did find many differences between the children of age 10-11 and those of age 11-12, on almost all measurements. On this aspect we present some methodical results about measuring enjoyment and intrinsic motivation with children of 10-12 years old.

When complexity becomes interesting

How to provide users a positive experience during interaction with information (i.e., the “Information eXperience” (IX)) is still an open question. As a starting point, this work investigates how the emotion of interest can be influenced by modifying the complexity of the information presented to users. The appraisal theory of interest suggests a “sweet spot” where interest will be at its peak: information that is novel and complex yet still comprehensible. This “sweet spot” is approximated using two studies. Study One develops a computational model of textual complexity founded on psycholinguistic theory on processing difficulty. The model was trained and tested on 12,420 articles, achieving a classification performance of 90.87% on two classes of complexity. Study Two puts the model to its ultimate test: Its application to change the users IX. Using 18 news articles the influence of complexity on interest and its appraisals is unveiled. A structural equation model shows a positive influence of complexity on interest, yet a negative influence of comprehensibility, confirming a seemingly paradoxical relationship between complexity and interest. By showing when complexity becomes interesting, this paper shows how information systems can use the model of textual complexity to construct an interesting IX.

The effect of stereoscopy and motion cues on 3D interpretation task performance

We study the effectiveness of stereoscopy and smooth motion as 3D cues for medical interpretation of vascular structures as obtained by 3D medical imaging techniques. We designed a user study where the user has to follow a path in a mazelike solid shaded 3D structure. The user controls rotation of the model. We measure user performance in terms of time taken and error rate. The experiment was executed with 32 (medical and non-medical) users. The results show that motion cue is more important than stereoscopy, and that stereoscopy has no added value when motion is already present, which is not consistent with previous experiments.

Team projects in distance education: a case in HCI design

Until recently it was difficult to incorporate team projects in distance education. Nowadays, however, new technology is available which allows for distance teamwork. In this paper we will describe a project-oriented course on human-computer interaction. The course is meant for computer science students in distance education. A serious restriction is caused by the fact that the students study at home, where they usually only have a slow connection to Internet at their disposal. We will focus on the way we structured the course to make distance teamwork possible. Furthermore the tools we offered the students will be discussed. Finally, in the paper we will present the first experiences gained in a pilot project with 12 computer science students.

The influence of approach speed and functional noise on users' perception of a robot

How a robot approaches a person greatly determines the interaction that follows. This is particularly relevant when the person has never interacted with the robot before. In human communication, we exchange a multitude of multimodal signals to communicate our intent while we approach others. However, most robots do not have the capabilities to produce such signals and easily communicate their intent. In this paper we propose to communicate intent when a robot approaches a person through functional noise and approach speed. Both were manipulated in a between-subjects experiment (N=40) either slowly increasing at the start of the approach and slowly decreasing when the robot reached the human or maximized at the start and abruptly stopped at the end of the approach. We analyzed questionnaires and video data from the interaction and found that particularly functional noise that in-/decreased in volume was helpful to communicate the robots intent but only in congruence with an in-/decreasing velocity.

Bombs, fish, and coral reefs

Often, the way subject matter is included in educational games does not fully utilize or sometimes even inhibits the full learning potential of games. This paper argues that in order to optimally use the potential of games for learning, games should be endogenous. An endogenous educational game is a game where the educational content is integrated in the game play mechanics themselves, rather than bolted-on using explicit messages. This research examines the relation between explicit messages, explorative game behavior, and comprehension by developing two versions of an endogenous educational game about overfishing, one with and one without an explicit purpose. The game was tested with 13 children aged 8 to 11. The results indicate that factual knowledge and comprehension is increased with explicit messages, and in particular deep comprehension is fostered by explorative game behavior. This confirms the plea for endogenous games to teach about bombs, fish, coral reefs, and more.

Instructional strategies for teaching database query languages

This chapter addresses the differential effects on learning outcomes of two instructional strategies in an introductory course on solving database query problems using a relational database. In both strategies a problem-solving method was explicitly presented to grade 10 high school students. One strategy involved a top-down approach in solving the problems, while in the other strategy problems were approached in a bottom-up fashion. Although the top-down approach is considered to be superior in solving problems in general, it is hypothesized that for novices this is only the case if they possess relatively much relevant knowledge and skills. For querying a relational database logical reasoning, knowledge of set theory and the ability to identify relevance and sufficiency of data are supposed to be important. It is hypothesized that for high-ability students (with respect to the knowledge and skills mentioned) the top-down approach will be superior to the bottom-up approach, but for low-ability students the bottom-up approach will yield better results. For low-ability students the data supports the hypothesis; for high-ability students however, presenting different problem-solving strategies did not result in significant differences in learning outcomes. After discussing these results, plans for further research will be presented.

Using ICT in Distance Education: a Case

The paper describes a distance education course which uses ICT in a number of ways. In the first place the World Wide Web provides for part of the content. Next, the course is as far as possible available in a hyperstructure in electronic form. Finally, most of the necessary communication (for example between the students and between the students and their teacher) is supported by ICT. The paper describes extensively experiences with this course.