Formality Considered Harmful: Experiences, EmergingThemes, and Directions on the Use of Formal Representations inInteractive Systems

  • Authors:

  • Frank M. Shipman, III;Catherine C. Marshall

  • Affiliations:

  • Department of Computer Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-3112;Department of Computer Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-3112

  • Venue:
  • Computer Supported Cooperative Work
  • Year:
  • 1999

Quantified Score

Hi-index 0.00

Visualization

Abstract

This paper reflects on experiences designing, developing, andworking with users of a variety of interactive computer systems.The authors propose, based on these experiences, that the causeof a number of unexpected difficulties in human-computerinteraction lies in users‘ unwillingness or inability to makestructure, content, or procedures explicit. Besides recountingexperiences with system use, this paper discusses why usersreject or circumvent formalisms which require such explicitexpression, and suggests how system designers can anticipate andcompensate for problems users have in making implicit aspects oftheir tasks explicit. The authors propose computationalapproaches that address this problem, including incremental andsystem-assisted formalization mechanisms and methods forrecognizing and using undeclared structure; they also proposenon-computational solutions that involve designers and usersreaching a shared understanding of the task situation and themethods that motivate the formalisms. This paper poses that,while it is impossible to remove all formalisms from computingsystems, system designers need to match the level of formalexpression entailed with the goals and situation of the users --a design criteria not commonly mentioned in current interfacedesign.