We examined the differential benefits of instructional materials for younger and older adults learning to use a home medical device. Participants received training on use of a blood glucose meter via either a user manual (a text guide with pictures) or an instructional video. Performance was measured immediately and then after a 2-week retention interval. Type of instruction was critical for determining older adults' performance. Older adults trained using the manual had poorer performance than did all other groups. After only 1 calibration, older adults who received video training performed as accurately as did the younger adults. Older adults' performance was more influenced by the retention interval; however, the benefit of the video training was maintained for the older adults across the retention interval. Confidence ratings paralleled subjective workload ratings. The data provide practical information to guide the development of training programs for systems that will be used by both younger and older adults; they also demonstrate the need for age-related usability testing even for training program design.
Contrary to manufacturers' claims about ease of use, real users report a number problems with complex devices at home. f Definitely Not "As Easy as 1, 2, 3" "It's as easy as 1, 2, 3" begins the videotape that accompanies a commonly used blood glucose meter. "Simply set up the meter, check the system, and test your blood." However, our analysis of the system suggested that it is not quite that easy. Sure, there are three general steps involved in using the system, but implementation of those steps requires the user to do 52 substeps! The first column of the table on pages 8-9 lists all the steps required to test one's blood using a typical blood glucose meter. Setting up the meter requires 6 steps, checking the system requires 22 steps, and testing of the blood glucose level requires 24 steps. This level of complexity is not unique to one particular meter; we conducted a task analysis on another commonly used meter and found 61 substeps. When people are told that a system is trivially easy to use but have difficulties with it, they tend to blame themselves. They may be too embarrassed to ask for assistance, stop using the system altogether, or continue to use it without realizing they're using it incorrectly. Additional evidence that blood glucose meters are not trivially easy to use comes from a study conducted to assess the accuracy of the blood glucose readings obtained by diabetics using blood glucose meters (Colagiuri, Colagiuri, Jones, & Moses, 1990). Colagiuri et al. tracked 90 patients using two different meters for one month. Participants were asked to test previously measured solutions. The results showed that 62 % of the patients made at least one error that was classified as "clinically significant," meaning that the patient either would have taken a medically inappropriate action or failed to take a medically appropriate action based on the incorrect reading. According to the error classification conducted by Colagiuri et al., the most frequent cause of the error was a "faulty technique" on the part of the user. In these researchers' words, "the most commonly encountered error arose from the patient not adhering to the EDICAL DEVICES ARE DESIGNED TO 6 ERGONOMICS IN DESIGN• WINTER 2001 12 ERGONOMICS IN DESIGN. WINTER 200 I
As the prevalence of computer-based technologies increases throughout society, so does the likelihood that older adults will be required to interact with them. Unfortunately, such systems often appear to older adults to be too hard to use and too hard to learn. We provide examples highlighting the opportunities available to behavioural science to affect training and system design through practically relevant research. We focus on our research on ageing, computer use, and training to support our assertion that applied research aimed at designing training materials and system interfaces to enhance the performance of older adults can and should be driven by psychological theory. The data presented and studies reviewed here clearly demonstrate that theory is critical for predicting age differences in computer use, for guiding the development of both training and design interventions for older computer users, and for reconciling conflicting findings in the design-evaluation literature.
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The Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC) is implementing a new approach to the operational test and evaluation (OT&E) process. This approach, task-based OT&E, focuses on the tasks performed by users of a system under test. Operator tasks will be analyzed and used to evaluate C4I systems by “rolling up” task performance in a larger, mission-level framework. As a means of evaluating the system's operational effectiveness, operational testers will assess the system's contribution to overall mission accomplishment. The Test and Evaluation Research and Education Center (TEREC) at the Georgia Institute of Technology was contracted by AFOTEC to characterize and evaluate the task-based OT&E process and then propose a set of commercially available software tools to support the operational tester. This paper describes the task-based OT&E process and the results of a tool requirements analysis. Based on requirements derived from this analysis, a set of commercially available software tools was recommended. From a human factors perspective, task-based OT&E presents an interesting challenge. Specifically, it requires human factors support at two user levels: the system operator level and the operational tester level.
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