Computing Students - Notes - Learning Process: Cognitive and HCI Factors

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Notes > Interactive Systems / HCI > Learning Process: Cognitive and HCI Factors

There is a big problem in assuming users will read the manual and refer to it when they get stuck. This is because very they rarely do! New users to a system often just start to use the system, exploring its features, or they observe other users using the system. "Experts" on systems can be even less inclined to pick up the manual partly due to psychological factors. They often prefer to use familiar methods rather than learning new, more efficient methods.

The learning process / transition from a novice to an expert can be broken down into three stages as shown below:

Cognitive Stage --> Associative Stage --> Autonomous Stage

The cognitive stage involves learning declarative knowledge and memorising information in order start developing general rules. See the next section for more about declarative knowledge. The associative stage involves applying the declarative knowledge in order to develop procedural knowledge. The autonomous stage is where the skills that have been acquired become automatic to the person. The original declarative knowledge becomes less involved in the carrying out of the task.

Procedural and Declarative Knowledge

Being able to learn a new skill involves gaining declarative knowledge and procedural knowledge. Declarative knowledge is not applied knowledge. Rather it involves learning facts about the world or system. Procedural knowledge involves knowing how to do something rather than just knowing about it. An example that demonstrates the difference between procedural and declarative knowledge is the skill of driving a car. Knowing about the technical aspects of how a car's steering wheel, gear stick and pedals work is a long way away from knowing how to use them in an applied context i.e. on the road.

Good ISD Helps Users to Learn a System

To help users learn a system, the system should provide feedback and prompt the user to action. They may often not know what they should be doing if they encounter an unfamiliar situation. The interaction process should be kept simple. Short input requirements for each interaction step is a way to maintain simplicity.

Allowing the users to use Knowledge In The World (KITW) and metaphors where possible will improve ease of use. Feedback can be provided in both textual or visual format depending on whether a GUI is being employed. Some good guidelines on what error messages and system feedback messages should contain are outlined below:

- What just happened
- Why it happened
- What can be done
- Plain English!

The last point is an important one. Giving complex explanations involving jargon, which is meaningless to the typical user, will only cause problems. Including error codes and other similar technical information is often unnecessary as the user cannot understand, let alone use, this information.

Collaborative and Situated Learning

Users do not always learn alone. Learning can be a social or collaborative process. Knowledge can be learnt from other people. The study of collaborative learning looks closely at people's motivations and how they can express and analyse problems in a collaborative fashion in order to reach a solution. Situated learning involves learning as an "apprentice" within an organisation or community.

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