Markus Geissler, PhD

Professor, Computer Information Science

Cosumnes River College

Sacramento, California, USA

Overview Quick review

Hofstede’s Cultural DimensionsHall’s high- vs. low-context cultures

Defining small screen devices Cultural issues related to ICT convergence Defining software agents Agent-related considerations for small

screen devices Examples

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Quick Review:Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Power Distance (PDI) Individualism/Collectivism (IDV) Masculinity/Femininity (MAS) Uncertainty Avoidance (UAI) Long-Term Orientation (LTO)

Source: http://www.geert-hofstede.com

High- vs. low-context cultures (Hall, 1976)

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Defining Small Screen Devices

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Characteristics of Small Screen Devices Small screen continues to be a

requirement for portability User can see only one or two

applications at a time Keyboard issues

SmallLimited number of charactersFewer function keys

Power-related issues

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

ICT Convergence

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

ICT Convergence Multiple separate

devices are being combined into one

Objective: Make the features of the converged device as usable as when they required separate devices.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Modern SmartPhone Features

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Modern SmartPhone Features Now seriously…

SmartPhones can perform many different tasks.

Good SmartPhones can download and run many different applications.

Very good SmartPhones can perform more than one task at a time.

… if the users want that capability!

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Cultural IssuesRelated to ICT Convergence Some cultures handle convergence

better than othersCultural dimensionsOther factors

○ Age○ Gender○ Level of education○ Level of IT skill and experience

Some let agents handle convergence!

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Definitions of Agent

Common usageAn agent is a “person who acts on behalf of

another, for example, managing business, financial or contractual matters, or provides a service.”

Computer science-relatedAn agent is “an entity that performs a

specific activity in an environment of which it is aware and that can respond to changes.”○ (Sterling & Taveter, 2009)

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Agent Design Considerationsfor Small Screen Devices - 1a Problem: Small screen size

Agents need to fit as much information onto the screen as practical.

Potential benefit to users“By stripping down the Web site interface to

the most basic functions, site designers can focus the user’s attention and offer relevant information without distractions.”○ (Markoff, 2008)

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Agent Design Considerationsfor Small Screen Devices - 1b Solutions

Prevent less important content from being displayed.

Include user interface components for easy navigation.

Use style sheets to customize content display.○ (Jones & Marsden, 1997)

Include a “zooming facility to enlarge display beyond the physical limits of the screen”○ (Churchill & Hedberg, 2008)

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Agent Design Considerationsfor Small Screen Devices - 1c Members of high-UAI cultures may not

be satisfied with seeing only part of the content.

Members of low-context cultures may desire to see more information than is possible to present.

Members of high-context cultures may not be easily able to figure out functions with which they are not familiar.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Agent Design Considerationsfor Small Screen Devices - 2a Problem: Ability to only display one or

two applications at a time Solution: Allow applications to run in the

background and inform users of desired events.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Agent Design Considerationsfor Small Screen Devices - 2b “Design for short contacts and task

centeredness”(Churchill & Hedberg, 2008)

Use the designated information area. Use available light and sound functions. Make notifications configurable

Members of high-LTO, high-UAI or low-MAS cultures will likely want more frequent notification.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Agent Design Considerationsfor Small Screen Devices - 3 Problem: Limited input capabilities Solution: Design agents that work well

with the device capabilities.Make button functions context-sensitive.Indicate to members of high-UAI cultures

what the current button function is.Include the capability to handle voice

commands.○ Interface with voice command or touch screen

agents

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Agent Design Considerationsfor Small Screen Devices - 4 Problem: Limited battery power Solution: Design agents that minimize

power usage.And further reduce it when the battery is low.Poll batch and network functions as infrequently

as practical.Design and empower intermediary agents to

handle multiple polling functions.Designers from low-PDI cultures may find it

more difficult to create agent hierarchies. Or just include a larger battery…

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Intermediary Agents

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Agent Design Considerationsfor Small Screen Devices - 5 Problem: Some elements are probably

too complex for most people, no matter what their culture.“Movable, collapsible, overlapping,

semitransparent interactive panels”○ (Churchill & Hedberg, 2008)

Solution: Keep it simple!Divide a complex application into multiple

smaller and simpler applets, if possible.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

A Possible Overarching Approach Allow users to set their own preferences

so that all enabled agents can customize the user experience and thereby provide a consistent interface for the user.Embedded agents may be able to assist

users in creating those preferences.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Example

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Summary

Cultures approach various ICTs differently

Design agents to allow users from multiple cultures

Approach the design of agents for small screen devices from the perspective of the user

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Bibliography Choi, B., Lee, I., Kim, J., & Jeon, Y.

(2005). Proceedings from CHI 2005: A Qualitative Cross-National Study of Cultural Influences on Mobile Data Service Design. Portland, OR: ACM.

Churchill, D. & Hedberg, J. (2008). Learning object design considerations for small-screen handheld devices. Computers & Education 50 (3), pp. 881-893.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Bibliography (continued) Hall, E.T. (1976). Beyond Culture, New

York: Doubleday. Hofstede, G. (2009). Geert Hofstede™

Cultural Dimensions. Retrieved February 22, 2010 from http://www.geert-hofstede.com/ .

Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture’s consequences: comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Bibliography (continued)

Hofstede, G. (1997). Cultures and Organizations: Software of the mind. New York: McGraw Hill.

Jones, M. & Marsden, G. (1997). From the large screen to the small screen - retaining the designer‘s design for effective user interaction. The Institution of Electrical Engineers. Retrieved from http://ieeexplore.ieee.org

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)

Bibliography (continued)

Markoff, J. (July 13, 2008). On a Small Screen, Just the Salient Stuff. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/technology/13stream.html

Sterling, L. & Taveter, K. (2009). The Art of Agent-Oriented Modeling. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

Cultural Factors Affecting the Design of Agents Embedded in Small Screen Portable Devices

(SmartPhones, MP3 players, PDAs, etc.)