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| User and Usability Studies Research Group |
The focus of this research group is doing worthwhile, scientifically-based Information Science and Human-Computer Interaction research. There are two broad areas of research.
Firstly, the emphasis is on the provision of information and library services, policies pertaining to these services, as well as the technical operations involved. The goal is to identify ways of improving information and library services, and ensuring that they continue to be relevant in the evolving information society. Research is also being done on information literacy, and on the use of information. In-depth studies of particular user groups and their information needs are being carried out to develop effective information services for them.
Secondly, the group is also interested to improve user experience of interactive, information and knowledge systems: making them more usable, useful, safer and less frustrating. Our main strength lies in the development and evaluation of formal and semi-formal usability analysis techniques and social / cultural aspects of interaction design. We further our research in these areas by working in a range of application areas that provide complex case studies. We have particular strength in the area of Digital Libraries and mobile devices.
We do this by carrying out research that aims to: |
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understand people, their information needs and how they use technology; |
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understand the best methods for designing for humans and a deeper understanding of interactions both in general and in specific application areas; and |
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develop innovative tools, techniques, methods and models to assist in the analysis, design and evaluation of interactive, information systems. |
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| Staff Members |
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Professor Schubert Foo |
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Assoc Prof. Abdus Chaudhry |
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Assoc Prof. Christopher Khoo |
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Assoc Prof. Shaheen Majid |
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Asst Prof. Dion Goh |
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Asst Prof. Theng Yin Leng |
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| Collaborators |
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Within NTU - National Institute of Education, School of Mechanical and Production Engineering, School of Computer Engineering, University Library, etc. |
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Outside NTU - National Library Board, Singapore General Hospital, University of Waikato (New Zealand), etc. |
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| Research Projects and Grants |
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| Postgraduate Student Projects |
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Title of Project: Design and Development of a Suite of Usability Engineering Tools for Digital Libraries on Mobile Environment and the Web
Investigators: Asst Prof Theng Yin Leng (PI), Asst Prof Dion Goh (Co-PI)
Funding: AcRF (S$58,373)
Duration: Dec 2003 to Nov 2006
Description: Institutions are spending millions of dollars implementing digital libraries (DLs) and Web portals. However, many studies have found the usability and effectiveness of current DLs and portals to be poor. As we have problems producing good Web sites evidenced by much research done to address problems on the Web, it is reasonable to anticipate that we may have problems creating good DLs. This is because DLs are more than just Web sites or stores of information, containing text-based and/or geospatial content. Although there has been some research conducted over the last few years in understanding user needs of text-based and geospatial DLs, there is little work done in helping to make the usability evaluation process of DLs less cumbersome and tedious.
We need better tools and techniques to help DL designers evaluate their systems in ways that will improve usability to enhance users' experience of DL collections and products. This proposal investigates usability engineering techniques, a combination of qualitative and quantitative techniques, applicable not only for text-based DLs but also for geospatial DLs, on the Web as well as the mobile environments. DLs of universities, public libraries and national libraries have large user populations, in tens and hundreds of thousands of users. Improvements in DL design can have a major organisational, national and international impact.
Collaborators: Recognising its importance, this proposal has the support of the NTU library and the National Library Board (NLB). Two research centres at NTU, Centre for Human Factors and Ergonomics (CHFE, MPE) and Centre for Advanced Computer Information Systems (CAIS, SCE), and the University of Waikato (New Zealand), are internal and external collaborators working with us to exploit the potential of applying this research to the mobile environment, which is fast becoming the popular platform for systems delivering "on-demand" use. The Java Wireless Competency Centre (JWCC), perceiving the practical importance to industry, is keen to assist possible market tie-ups.
Publications in 2004 |
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Theng, Y.L., Goh, D., Lim, E.P., Liu, Z.H., Yin, M., Pang, L.S., Wong, B.B. (2004), Applying Scenario-Based Design and Claims Analysis on the Design of a Digital Library of Geography Examination Resources. Accepted for publication in Information Processing and Management Journal. |
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Chan, M.Y., Khoo, A.L., Theng, Y.L. and Buddharaju, R. (2004). Applying Scenario-based Design and Claims Analysis to Evaluate Usability of the National Library Board Digital Library. Accepted to 7th International Conference on Work With Computing Systems, WWCS 2004, June 29- July 2, 2004, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. |
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Khoo, A.L., Chan, M.Y., Theng, Y.L. and Buddharaju, R. (2004). Quantitative Evaluation of Effectiveness of the National Library Board Digital Library - eLibraryHub (2004). Accepted to 7th International Conference on Work With Computing Systems, WWCS 2004, June 29- July 2, 2004, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. |
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Theng, Y.L., Chan, M.Y., Khoo, A.L. and Buddharaju, R. (2004). Qualitative and Quantitative Evaluations of the National Library Board. Book chapter accepted for publication in book "Design and Usability of Digital Libraries : Case Studies in the Asia Pacific", Idea Group Publishing. |
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| Publications (1995 - 2003) |
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Theng, Y.L. (2003). Interrogating Google Search Engine using Claims Analysis and Web Design Heuristics. In Harris, D., Duffy, V., Smith, M. and Stephanidis, C. (Eds.), HCI International 2003 : Human Interface and Management of Information Thematic Area (pp. 1141-1144), Vol. 3, London : Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. |
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Theng, Y.L. (2002a), "Information Therapy in Digital Libraries," 5th International Conference on Asian Digital Libraries, ICADL'02, pp. 452 - 464, Springer-Verlag. |
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Theng, Y.L., Goh, D., Lim, E.P., Liu, Z.H., Pang, L.S., Wong, B.B. and Chua, L.H. (2002), "Intergenerational Partnerships in the Design of a Digital Library of Geography Examination Resources," 5th International Conference on Asian Digital Libraries, ICADL'02, pp. 427 - 439, Springer-Verlag. |
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Keith, S., Blandford, A., Fields, B. and Theng, Y.L. (2002), "An Investigation into the Application of Claims Analysis to Evaluate Usability of a Digital Library Interface," JCDL'02 Workshop on Usability of Digital Libraries, Portland (USA). |
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Theng, Y.L., Mohd-Nasir, N. and Thimbleby, H. (2000c), "A usability tool for Web evaluation applied to digital library design," Proceedings of the 9th International World Wide Web Conference, pp. 90-91, Amsterdam. |
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Theng, Y.L., Duncker, E., Mohd-Nasir, N., Buchanan, G. & Thimbleby, H. (1999), "Design guidelines and user-centred digital libraries," Lecture Notes in Computer Science: Research and Advanced Technology for Digital Libraries, Third European Conference ECDL 1999, Abiteboul, S. and Vercoustre, A.(Eds.), pp. 167 - 183, Springer. |
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Theng, Y.L. and Thimbleby, H. (1999), "Towards a usermetric tool to improve Web accessibility," WWW8, May 11 - 14, Canada. |
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Theng, Y.L., Marsden, G. and Thimbleby, H. (1998), "Towards continuous usability evaluation of Web documents," in May, J., Siddiqi, J. & Wilkinson, J. (editors), HCI'98 Conference Companion, pp. 40-41, Sheffield |
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Title of Project: Human Categorisation Behaviour
Investigators: Dr. Chris Khoo
Description: This is a series of studies investigating how humans categorise things and the cognitive processes involved, and developing models of human categorisation. Current work is focused on: |
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How users categorise Web pages |
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How computer users in the work place organize and categorise documents stored on their computer hard disk |
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| Papers |
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Khoo, C., Ng, K., & Ou, S. (2002). An exploratory study of human clustering of Web pages. In Lopez-Huertas, Maria J. (Ed.), Challenges in Knowledge Representation and Organisation for the 21st century: Integration of Knowledge across Boundaries: Proceedings of the Seventh International ISKO Conference, Granada, Spain (pp. 351-357). (Advances in Knowledge Organisation, Vol. 8). Germany: Ergon-Verlag. |
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Title of Project: Usability and Effectiveness of Online Library Catalog Interfaces
Investigator: Dr Christopher Khoo
Description: This is a series of studies investigating the usability and effectiveness of Web-based library online catalog interfaces, the problems encountered by users, and how the design of the interfaces can be improved. User searching and information seeking behavior is also investigated.
Papers |
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Chee, D.S.L., & Khoo, C. (In press). Users' mouse/cursor movements in two Web-based library catalog interfaces. To be presented at the 7th International Conference on Work With Computing Systems, WWCS 2004,Kuala Lumpur. |
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Cheng-Lu, & Khoo, C. (1997). An evaluation of Web interfaces to online catalogues. Singapore Libraries, 26(2), 17-33. |
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Title of Project: G-Portal - A Digital Library Infrastructure for Distributed Geospatial Information
Investigators: Assoc Prof Lim Ee Peng (PI, CAIS), Liu Zehua (CAIS), Asst Prof Dion Goh, Asst Prof Theng Yin Leng
Funding: SingAREN
Duration: 2001 - 2003
Description: G-Portal is an on-going digital library project at the Centre for Advanced Information Systems (CAIS) in Nanyang Technological University and staff at the Division of Information Studies. The aims of the project include identification, classification and Organisation of geospatial and georeferenced content on the Web, and the provision of digital services such as searching and visualisation. In addition, authorsed users may also contribute resources so that G-Portal becomes a common environment for knowledge sharing.
Research areas that this project addresses include:
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The development of a reusable software architecture for building geospatial digital library applications |
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Usability issues related to designing interfaces for access to geospatial information |
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Querying of geospatial data |
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Classification of geospatial information |
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Knowledge sharing and community building |
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| Publications in 2004 |
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Theng, Y.L., Goh, D., Lim, E.P., Liu, Z.H., Yin, M., Pang, L.S., Wong, B.B. (2004), Applying Scenario-Based Design and Claims Analysis on the Design of a Digital Library of Geography Examination Resources. Accepted for publication in Information Processing and Management Journal. |
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Goh, D., Theng, Y.L., Ming, Yin, Suen, E.K. and Lim, E. P. (2004). An Interactive Learning Environment for a Dynamic Educational Digital Library. WEAS Transactions on Computers (pp.756 -761), Issue 3, Vol. 3. July 2004. |
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Goh, D., Theng, Y.L. and Lim, E. P. (2004), A Digital Library for Geography Examination Resources. Book chapter accepted for publication in book "Design and Usability of Digital Libraries : Case Studies in the Asia Pacific", Idea Group Publishing. |
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| Publications (2000 - 2003) |
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Melati, D., Ming, Y., Theng, Y.L., Goh, D., and Lim, E.P. (2003). Towards a Role-Based Metadata Scheme for Educational Digital Libraries : A Case Study in Singapore. In Koch, T. and Solvberg, I. (Eds.), Lecture Notes in Computer Science: Research and Advanced Technology for Digital Libraries : Seventh European Conference on Research and Advanced Technology for Digital Libraries ECDL 2003 (pp. 41-51). Berlin: Springer-Verlag. |
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Goh, D., Theng, Y.L., Ming, Y. and Lim, E.P. (2003). PAPER for an educational digital library. In Sembok, T. M. T., Zaman, H. B., Chen, H., Urs, S. R. & Myaeng, S. H. (Eds.), The 6th International Conference on Asian Digital Libraries, ICADL, 2003. Digital libraries: Technology and Management of Indigenous Knowledge for Global Access (pp. 493-504). Berlin: Springer-Verlag. |
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Theng, Y.L., Goh, D., Lee, C.K., Lim, E.P. and Liu, Z.H. (2002b), "Digital Libraries to Knowledge Portals : Towards a Global Knowledge Portal for Secondary Schools in Singapore," Conference on "IT Opportunities and Challenges in the New Millennium", Beijing, pp. 291-303. |
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Theng, Y. L., Mohd-Nasir, N., Buchanan, G., Fields, B., Thimbleby, H. and Cassidy, N. (2001), "Dynamic Digital Libraries for Children," First ACM and IEEE Joint Conference in Digital Libraries, Ronaoke (Virginia), pp. 406 - 415. |
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Theng, Y.L., Mohd Nasir, N., Thimbleby, H., Buchanan, G., Jones, M., Bainbridge, D. and Cassidy, N. (2000a), "Children as Design Partners and Testers for a Children's Digital Library," Lecture Notes in Computer Science: Research and Advanced Technology for Digital Libraries : Fourth European Conference on Research and Advanced Technology for Digital Libraries ECDL 2000, Borbinha, J. and Baker, T. (Eds.), pp. 249 - 258, Lisbon (Portugal). |
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Theng, Y.L., Mohd-Nasir, N., Thimbleby, H., Buchanan, G. and Jones, M. (2000d), "Designing a children's digital library with and for children," ACMDL'2000, pp. 266-267, Texas. |
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Title of Project: A Qualitative Study of Information Seeking and Use in the Professional Workplace Context: Using the Sense Making Approach
Investigators: Professor Schubert Foo, Mr Mark Hepworth (Department of Information Science, Loughborough University, United Kingdom) and Ms Bonnie Cheuk Wai Yi
Description: This study investigates the information seeking and use process in the workplace. Three professional workgroups are being studied: auditors, engineers and architects. This research project adopts Brenda Dervin's Sense-Making approach, that aims at developing a process model of information seeking and use in the workplace. The model will have implications to improve current practices of information literacy education as well as improving information/knowledge management and systems design in the workplace. |
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Title of Project: Information Literacy and Skills in the Educational Environment
Investigators: Asst Prof Susan Higgins, Asst Prof Ramaiah Chennupati and Ms Bonnie Cheuk Wai Yi
Description: This project involves the study of tertiary students at NTU. IT began with a qualitative longitudinal study to understand the process students undergo while conducting independent research and partly to evaluate the usefulness of research methodology and to identify the problems students faced and hence their information literacy. This initial research has led to the investigation of methods for incorporating and highlighting information literacy in the curriculum. A similar study will be undertaken in a secondary school in Singapore. |
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Title of Project: Public Support for Community Children's Libraries in Singapore
Investigators: Asst Prof Susan Higgins
Description: This project reviews public library services for children in the Community Children's Libraries in Singapore. The study will attempt to document the development of Singapore's independent libraries that are solely devoted to meeting the needs of children below ten years of age. Quantitative and qualitative analysis will be done on circulation statistics, the quality of collections, programs and storytime attendance. Parents will also be interviewed to support researcher observations of how children use the public library. Community support for the endeavor of widespread literacy may be mapped through such indicators. As a result of analysis, recommendations for staffing and further enhancement of services may result. |
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Title of Project: User-centered Digital Library for the University Community
Investigators: Professor Schubert Foo and Mr N Meyyappan
Description: This research aims to study the effectiveness using a task-oriented user-centered approach design to a digital library for the use by the university community. It aims to provide an integrated platform to allow users to have access to specific information resources ranging from those available from the university's intranet, library, internet, and other sources, in order to meet the information needs of its diverse user community.
This project will be carried out in three phases. In the first phase, the various categories of users, their tasks and information resources needed to perform each tasks will be identified in an academic environment through a user needs study. In the second phase, a prototype digital work environment will be designed and built on the basis of the task analysis carried out in earlier phase including the development of appropriate mechanisms for access control, retrieval and management of digital information resources. The final phase involves a comprehensive evaluation and usability study of the prototype with a sampled user population. |
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Title of Project: Writing Abstracts for Scholarly Communication: Literacy of Novice ESL Research Scholars
Investigators: Professor Schubert Foo and Chan Soon Keng
Description: This research aims to investigate the impact of explicit knowledge about a specific genre on its production. The target population of the study are computer engineering research scholars' whose English Language proficiency is at non-native level (hence ESL RS scholars).
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Abstract writing for the scholarly community of computer engineering |
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The genre of abstract writing: rhetorical aspects of its information elements and stylistic features specific to the discourse community of computer engineering |
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ESL RS' explicit knowledge about abstract writing for their specialist community (Computer Engineering) |
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Genre analysis of a corpus of ESL RS scholars' abstracts for computer engineering conferences and journals including the identification and explanation of typical features of ESL RS abstracts |
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The role of subject specialists and common grounds with them in this interdisciplinary study |
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Impact of explicit knowledge on the writing skills of ESL RS |
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| The abstract genre was selected as the data collection source and a pilot study was conducted in the School of Computer Engineering at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. The study presents tentative observations that ESL RS in the University lack effective abstract writing skills and full appreciation of its genre. Problems seem to be rhetorical and linguistic. These two factors have affected their information transfer skills of their knowledge in the full text to the abbreviated discourse. Tentative conclusions support overt genre-based teaching of academic writing such as the abstract, especially for the newly recruited postgraduates from foreign cultures. |
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Postgraduate Student Projects
Ph.D. Projects |
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Writing Abstracts for Scholarly Communication: Literacy of Novice ESL Research Scholars
Student: Chan Soon Keng
Supervisor: Professor Schubert Foo |
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User-centered Digital Library for the University Community
Student: N. Meyyappan
Supervisor: Professor Schubert Foo |
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A Qualitative Study of Information Seeking and Use in the Professional Workplace Context: Using the Sense Making Approach
Student: Cheuk Wai Yi, Bonnie
Supervisor: Professor Schubert Foo |
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