Katja Neureiter

Capture the car!: qualitative in-situ methods to grasp the automotive context

In terms of human computer interaction (HCI), the car interior is a space, which can be divided into three areas: the drivers area, the front seat area, and the back seat area. So far HCI researchers have primary focused on the driver, and how in-car electronic devices can be designed to assist the driver in order to increase safety and comfort. We propose that for investigating interactive technology in the car in a holistic way, all three areas have to be taken into account. For that purpose we argue for an increased usage of qualitative in-situ studies, which have been hardly applied in automotive user interface research. So far the HCI community has mainly focused on laboratory studies utilizing driving simulators. Despite the broad range of available field study methods, such as ethnographic and self-reporting studies, the adaption of these methods for the automotive context is challenging due to the specific characteristics of this environment. For instance, cars provide only very limited space, the environment is constantly changing while driving and the driver must not be distracted from driving safely. As a consequence, a lack of experience exists, on how in-situ methods should be applied to cars. In this paper we describe three qualitative in-situ studies, we conducted to research the driver, the front seat passenger, and the rear seat passenger spaces. All three studies used a different method tailored to fit these three areas best. To share our experiences and insights we discuss the strengths and pitfalls of each method.

Revisiting personas: the making-of for special user groups

The diversity of special user groups, i.e. elderly from 50 to 90 years and children from 6 to 14 years, is huge. Assessing their requirements is challenging, as it requires sensitivity in terms of choosing an appropriate approach to collect data. Furthermore, the illustration of the data for the subsequent design process can be difficult, if different partners are involved in a project. In order to overcome these difficulties, we are exploring a decision diagram for the creation of personas. It aims at identifying the most appropriate approach (i.e. qualitative and/or quantitative data collection), taking into account the characteristics of the special user groups among other aspects. In this case study we present how we applied the decision diagram in three different projects to create personas for elderly and children.

Elderly's Social Presence Supported by ICTs: Investigating User Requirements for Social Presence

This paper investigates the user requirements for ICTs to support elderlys social inclusion. We aim to illustrate the potential of social presence for fostering elderlys social interaction. Therefore, we present results of requirements analyses and define implications for the design of ICTs enabling social presence. Social presence is important, as it supports gaining a feeling of belonging to somebody. The more elderly get involved in a common activity, and get aware of the emotions, attitudes or thoughts of another person, the more they will experience social presence, which in turn has a positive effect on social interaction. Due to the extremely heterogeneous target group in terms of technology affinity and acceptance as well as individual needs, it is time to reconsider current ICTs on their potential for designing new social interactions for elderly in order to achieve positive user experiences regarding social presence.

Active Corners: Collaborative In-Car Interaction Design

We present active corners, a novel interaction approach for in-car collaboration that maps the spatial arrangement of a car with up to four people (i.e., driver, front seat passenger, and two rear seat passengers) to the form factor of a tablet (i.e., having 4 corners). We use this mental model to allow the driver and passengers to collaborate with each other. Interaction is done by dragging-and-dropping items into the according corners of individual tablets. We present the basic interaction design concept along with three application scenarios. In order to evaluate active corners, we have implemented a multiplayer card game that exploits the proposed interaction concept and fosters collaboration. We report on four field studies in which we evaluated different aspects of the active corners concept. Results show that the interaction approach is intuitive and provides a high usability even in driving conditions.

Collaborative Appropriation: How Couples, Teams, Groups and Communities Adapt and Adopt Technologies

Previous workshops examined how individual users adopt and adapt technologies to meet local needs, “completing design through use.” However, there has been little systematic study of how groups engage collaboratively in these activities. This workshop opens a discussion for these forms of collaborative appropriation, including field studies, design explorations, theoretical accounts, and critical reflections. We invite submissions addressing the following and other topics in collaborative appropriation: Practical experiences in design for collaborative appropriation Flexible, open design and tailorability as support for collaborative appropriation Design goals, guidelines, and principles for collaborative appropriation Major drivers to design for collaborative appropriation Emergent roles (actors) in collaborative appropriation practices Characterization and differentiation of collaborative appropriation between couples, teams, groups, and communities Lessons learned from other design movements and research domains to inform the design for collaborative appropriation

Developing an effective social presence system for older adults: The Connected Vitality Network

Communication over distance via the use of communication technologies aims to offer and enable contact for older adults, who are typically restricted in terms of mobility and tend to suffer from loneliness due to the lack of social inclusion. Technologies enable communication over distance but suffer greatly in terms of providing the feeling of being connected, lacking also social presence during a remote contact. The Connected Vitality Network puts older adults at the centre of attention to study their needs for designing suitable human computer interaction methods and implement a social (tele)-presence system, which enables closeness and promotes social inclusion. Key research studies, workshop results, design principles and implementation details are presented in this paper.

Hand and eyes: how eye contact is linked to gestures in video conferencing

Video-mediated communication (VMC) technologies enable communication and interaction over distance and try to provide the user the experience of real face-to-face interaction and social presence. Although those systems allow a variety of nonverbal cues, most of them lack eye contact due to the vertical displacement between the camera (e.g., at the top edge of the screen) and the image of the communication partners eyes. In an initial study we explored the interdependency of eye contact, gaze behavior and gestures with respect to social presence. Our results indicate that allowing for eye contact fosters the perception of gestures.

Look into My Eyes & See, What You Mean to Me. Social Presence as Source for Social Capital

Eye contact is presumed to be one of the most important non-verbal cues in human communication. It supports mutual understanding and builds the foundation for social interaction. In recent years, a variety of systems that support eye contact have been developed. However, research hardly focuses on investigating the impact of eye contact on social presence. In a study with 32 participants, we investigated the role of eye contact and gaze behavior with respect to social presence. Our results indicate that not only a system‘s capability to enable eye contact but also a user‘s consciously perceived eye contact are important to experience that the communication partner is ‘there’, i.e., social presence. Considering social presence as a source for social capital, i.e., valuable relationships that are characterized by trust and reciprocity, we discuss in what way social presence can serve as a contributing factor in video-mediated communication.

The Potential of VMC Systems to Support Social Capital

Video-mediated communication systems allow to communicate over distance and offer possibilities to build up or maintain social relationships. Such systems convey a variety of non-verbal cues (e.g., gestures or facial expressions), which support mutual understanding and can evoke the feeling of being close to the remote communication partner. The aim of my thesis is to investigate the potential of video-mediated communication systems to increase cohesion and identity of small groups and develop a sense of belongingness, i.e., support bonding forms of social capital. This will be done by investigating the interrelation between social presence and social capital in video-mediated communication.

Active Assisted Living (AAL) Beiträge der Mensch-Computer Interaktion zum Gesunden Altern

Der demographische Wandel, der sich in einer zunehmenden Lebenserwartung und einem Ruckgang der Geburtenrate widerspiegelt, hat die Altersstruktur unserer Gesellschaft in den letzten Jahren stark verandert und ist zu einer der grosten sozialpolitischen Herausforderungen geworden. Die EU hat mit der Lissabon-Strategie einen ersten Grundstein gelegt, um diesen Herausforderungen zu begegnen (Krohnert et al., 2008). Vielversprechende Ansatze wie „Aktives Altern“ sind auch im Rahmenprogramm, Strategie Europa 2020, verankert und zielen unter anderem darauf ab, es alteren Menschen zu ermoglichen, aktiv in der Gesellschaft teilzunehmen sowie bei guter Gesundheit und in angemessenen Wohnbedingungen im eigenen Zuhause alt zu werden (Europaische Kommission, 2012).