Yu Hung Chien

Learning and context of use for small-screen leading displays on visual performance in a Chinese sample.

Leading displays represent mechanisms for exhibiting temporal instead of spatial information to overcome the limited display space of mobile devices. Prior studies focused only on information presented but disregarded the influence of context of use and learnability. In this study, 12 Chinese-speaking college students were presented a small-screen mobile device that simultaneously showed 100 Chinese characters and a 30-character leading display. Analyzed were presentation rate (250, 350, and 450 characters per minute), presentation mode (character-by-character or word-by-word), and learning (5 practice sessions) by instructing the subjects to perform a static information search task to identify the location of target characters on the screen and through an evaluation of reading comprehension for the text presented in the leading display. There was no significant change in performance over the 5 days of practice, but the rate of presentation and word-by-word presentation significantly affected reading comprehension. Results indicated that none of the leading-display factors distracted subjects from the static information-search task, but they were influenced by comprehension of the leading-display content.

Effects of message framing and exemplars on promoting organ donation

People in many countries are unwilling to donate organs. Drawing on previous research regarding the use of message framing and the theory of exemplification promoting intentions to donate organs, this study examined messaging strategies. This study used a 2 × 2 between-subjects factorial design to examine the joint effects of gain/loss frames and statistical/exemplar appeals on the intentions of 189 Taiwanese college students (108 women, 81 men; age range = 19–24 yr., M = 21.6, SD = 2.9) regarding organ donation. Each participant was randomly assigned to read one of four versions of an organ donation promotional message and then to complete a questionnaire. The analysis of variance showed a significant interaction between the two factors. Loss–exemplar messages elicited significantly more positive intentions toward donation than did loss–statistical messages. There was no significant difference between the statistical and exemplar appeals observed under the gain-framed condition. The practical implications of developing effective organ donation promotional materials and the limitations of this study are discussed.

The effects of sex, topological structure, and task type on hypertext navigational performance

Currently, almost all online materials use hyperlinks to provide users access to background, supplemental, or alternative information presented in context, greatly increasing the potential integration of information. However, a major problem is that people do not navigate hyperlinks effectively when the links become more topologically complex. Thus, identification of the variables that lead to navigational errors is necessary for the effective design of hyperlinks. Ninetyone participants (45 women, 46 men) were recruited for this experiment. All were college students and ranged in age from 19 to 23yr. (M = 20.87, SD = 1.02). Navigational performance was examined in relation to sex, topological structure, and task type. A network topology with single-node task was superior to one with a linear topology under a single-node task condition, but equal to one with a linear topology under a multi-node task condition. Men navigated the linear topology with multi-node task and a network topology with a single-node task significantly faster than women, whereas no significant differences were observed under the other conditions. Sex interacted with topological structure and task type. This study extended the research in this domain by demonstrating an interactive effect among sex, topological structure, and task type on the navigational performance of users and can contribute to research regarding web page design.

A Taiwanese User Experience Questionnaire

The use of questionnaires is an efficient and inexpensive method to measure user experience. Existing user-experience questionnaires developed based on Western populations and cultures. Given that cultural differences can influence judgments and the experience of products, questionnaires on user experiences based on Western cultures are not necessarily universal. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop a Taiwanese User-Experience Questionnaire (TUEQ) with semantic differential techniques to understand the experience of Taiwanese users in relation to interactive digital products. A 23-item TUEQ was constructed in this study. The TUEQ identifies four main dimensions contributing to the experience of Taiwanese users: pragmatic quality, general hedonic quality, contemporary hedonic quality, and unique hedonic quality. The practical implications of the TUEQ and further study needed for a satisfactory level of reliability and construct validity are discussed.

Collaborative Modes on Collaborative Problem Solving

Collaborative problem solving (CPS) is an important skill for 21st-century workplaces. We examined the effects of two collaborative modes (learner-on-computer agent mode and learner-on-learner mode) on the CPS performance of 64 college students (28 women, 36 men; age range = 18–22 yr., M = 20.1, SD = 1.2). Participants’ CPS performance scores in the learner-on-computer agent mode were significantly higher than those in the learner-on-learner mode. The optimal mode for teaching CPS skills, the practical implications of using a CPS system, and the limitations of this study are also discussed.

Rapid Serial Visual Presentation Display on a Small Screen: Reading Chinese While Walking

This study examined the effects of presentation unit (word-byword or single line) and presentation duration [171, 213, 240, and 308 msec, per character (msec./C)] on the comprehension of Chinese rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) displays read from the small screen of a mobile phone in three different contexts (seated, walking on a treadmill, and walking through an outdoor course). 30 native Chinese readers ages 19 to 26 were recruited as participants. Scores on reading comprehension showed that presentation unit and presentation duration significantly affected reading comprehension, and interactions between factors were also significant. When the presentation unit was word-by-word, no significant difference in reading comprehension was observed under different presentation durations. However, when the presentation unit was a single line, reading comprehension deteriorated with the shortest presentation duration of 171 msec./C. With regard to context, participants had a higher mean reading comprehension score in the seated context than in walking contexts, but the difference was not significant.