Title
A reflective characterisation of occasional user.
Abstract
This work revisits established user classifications and aims to characterise a historically unspecified user category, the Occasional User (OU). Three user categories, novice, intermediate and expert, have dominated the work of user interface (UI) designers, researchers and educators for decades. These categories were created to conceptualise user's needs, strategies and goals around the 80s. Since then, UI paradigm shifts, such as direct manipulation and touch, along with other advances in technology, gave new access to people with little computer knowledge. This fact produced a diversification of the existing user categories not observed in the literature review of traditional classification of users. The findings of this work include a new characterisation of the occasional user, distinguished by user's uncertainty of repetitive use of an interface and little knowledge about its functioning. In addition, the specification of the OU, together with principles and recommendations will help UI community to informatively design for users without requiring a prospective use and previous knowledge of the UI. The OU is an essential type of user to apply user-centred design approach to understand the interaction with technology as universal, accessible and transparent for the user, independently of accumulated experience and technological era that users live in. Significance of user classification for the design of interactive systems.Analysis of user classifications, identifying common definition parameters.Notification of the absence of the Occasional User in previous classifications.Presentation of specific parameters and examples of Occasional Users.Enumeration of main implications of the Occasional User in user interface design.
Year
DOI
Venue
2017
10.1016/j.chb.2016.12.027
Computers in Human Behavior
Keywords
Field
DocType
User classification,Occasional use,User models,HCI theory,Concepts and models
Social psychology,User experience design,Computer science,Knowledge management,Human–computer interaction,User modeling,Computer user satisfaction,World Wide Web,User interface design,User interface,User requirements document,Interface metaphor,User journey
Journal
Volume
Issue
ISSN
70
C
0747-5632
Citations 
PageRank 
References 
1
0.36
14
Authors
4
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Antonio Carrillo121.40
Santiago Martinez224.77
Juan Falgueras3384.33
Ken Scott-Brown4125.11