User Interface Development for a Computer-Based User Study: The Universal Model Approach

The Universal Model is an Human Computer Interaction model claimed to be applicable to any interactive system or product. In a computer-based user study, what users do and how fast they can do their tasks are the critical factors that can influence research results. Therefore, having a friendly and easy-to-use interface is crucial in a computer-based user study applications. In this paper, we present our approach in developing a pre-prepared software, ViSigStudy using Universal Model. ViSigStudy is designed to evaluate the effectiveness of four types of visual representations using visual signatures that represent video motions in two-dimensional form. It contains a data entry page and test pages for displaying the visual signatures with questions, to evaluate the effectiveness of these representations. We added a preliminary tier into the Universal Model to introduce the visual signatures (which participants have no prior knowledge of) before participants enter the test application. The added preliminary tier is important in this scientific experiment as the understanding of the visual representation introduced as stimuli, determines the success of the experiment. Results of the experiment have been very encouraging, showing that the experiment was a success.