Influencing versus Informing Design, Part 2: Macrocognitive Modeling

Cognitive-systems engineers study the cognitive work conducted in sociotechnical contexts and, from that understanding, provide guidance to software engineers. The previous essay in this department discussed how there can be a gap-the guidance from cognitive-systems engineers can inform design, but what software engineers actually need are designs. The gap has been successfully crossed in one direction, in projects in which cognitive-systems engineers expressed the requirements in a way that captured key functionalities and their rationale, thereby speaking to the software engineer´s needs. This essay works in the other direction: providing systems engineers with an easy-to-use method-the macrocognitive modeling procedure-that might enable them to ramp up their understanding of the cognitive work. The procedure involves creating and then validating models of domain practitioners´ reasoning. The method is easy to use and can enable software engineers to ramp up their understanding of end users´ cognitive work.