Design Process
How we design new technologies has a profound effect on what these new technologies ultimately can be. Each time we make decisions about the design process, the final product or research can dramatically change. The design process of technology is as much a part of our research at the HCIL as the actual technologies we make. Our research here is concerned with how we can bring users into the design process. We see the role of users as everything from active partners, to inspectors or testers, to research participants that are observed and/or interviewed. We are exploring these roles with users as a way to better understand and shape the technology design process for the future.
Current Projects
Adolescent Search
We are examining search roles, or patterns of behavior, in
adolescents when searching for information on a computer to
compare with roles found when studying younger children.
Children as Design Partners (Intergenerational Design Teams)
Children, ages 7-11, work with HCIL faculty/staff/students after school and over the summer to create new technolgies for children.
Past Projects
InterLiving: Technologies for Families
Bringing together families and researchers with the goal of developing technologies that will encourage communication, collaboration and creativity.
Kids Search
We are examining search roles, or patterns of behavior, in
children ages 7, 9, and 11 when searching for information
on a computer.
Lifelines for Juvenile Justice (Original)
LifeLines provide a general visualization environment for personal histories.
Questionnaire for User Interface Satisfaction (QUIS)
The QUIS is designed to assess users' subjective satisfaction with specific aspects of the human-computer interface.
Social Action
SocialAction is a social network visualization that provides analysts systematic and flexible techniques for exploration.
