The mainstream framework of computer-interaction research of cognitive psychology has come under increasing criticism lately because of the gap between research results and practical design. According to Kuutti [8], the main criticism is that traditional cognitive psychology of design is not able to penetrate the human side of the interface. To overcome these limitations, an alternative approach to interface design is necessary. Activity Theory, which originated within Soviet psychology, appears to have much to offer. Activity Theory incorporates notions of intentionality, history, mediation, motivation, understanding, culture and community and it is these aspects that have proved attractive to interface design. We believe that Activity Theory offers several benefits to interface design, compared to the traditional cognitive psychology approach.This paper describes a case study involving the use of Activity Theory for the design and evaluation of a tourist information kiosk.
The debate about the usefulness or otherwise of Computing Science degrees has raged for some time.
Critics of these degree courses have stated that the courses do not satisfy the needs of commercial and industrial users; that they do not train the graduate to be of immediate use or that the subject is developing too rapidly for degrees to impart any lasting knowledge and so on.
It may be (and is) argued by some, that an Institute of Higher Education (be it College, Polytechnic* or University) should not aim to train students to be of immediate use to industry. However there is obviously a demand for trained personnel in the computing field, as demonstrated by the proliferation of courses run by manufacturers, various professional bodies and commercial organizations, and it is to satisfy this demand that a number of Polytechnics in England, and Sheffield Polytechnic in particular, have designed courses aimed at
educating
students in the field of computing.
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