Towards Ecological, Embodied and User-Centric Design in Auditory Display

Abstract

Auditory display research has been criticised over a perceived lack of progress in tackling key issues relating to usability and user-experience. However, emerging trends in design-thinking present new tools for addressing the usability concerns that have long beleaguered this field of inquiry. In this paper, we provide an in-depth analysis on the emergence of design-based approaches in auditory display research by mapping out the progression of current research in the field. Through an ecological and embodied approach to perception and cognition, we then evaluate user-centric design strategies as tools for better understanding complex design spaces and improving usability. We then present a discussion to elucidate the benefits to auditory display research of employing usercentric design strategies for future projects.

A Technical Framework for Musical Biofeedback in Stroke Rehabilitation

“…pitch, loudness, brightness, spatialization), which generate aesthetically simple feedback signals. These are known to cause auditory fatigue, annoyance and dissatisfaction, making them less likely to be accepted by users [25], [28], [27], [26], [29]. Naturalness and clear causality in the iconic gesture-sound mapping of auditory displays have been found to contribute to their perceived usability [30], in line with the general aesthetics-usability correlation seen in human-computer interaction literature [31].…”

“…MBF is a relatively complex signal due to its organization in time and frequency, possibly containing several coordinated instrumental and vocal elements that can provide variety to the feedback signal [33]. A general criticism levelled against such aesthetic approaches to sonification is that the interpretation of the underlying data is more difficult [26], [27], and in the case of music entails the learning of a new 'sonic grammar' [35]. It has, however, been argued that there is a cultural or aesthetic baseline in popular music systems, which is accessible to untrained listeners and allows them to appreciate music with minimal cognitive overhead in the absence of formal training [35].…”

“…Despite promise, ABF has failed to attain widespread practical adoption [25], [26], partly due to a lack of focus on aesthetics and naturalness in sonic interaction design [25] leading to poor user experience [27]. Most ABF systems reviewed here, provide feedback through simple audio manipulations (e.g.…”

A Technical Framework for Musical Biofeedback in Stroke Rehabilitation

“…Despite promise, ABF has failed to attain widespread practical adoption [28], [29], partly due to a lack of focus on aesthetics and naturalness in sonic interaction design [28] leading to poor user experience [30]. Most ABF systems reviewed here provide feedback through simple audio manipulations (e.g., pitch, loudness, brightness, and spatialization), which generate relatively simple feedback signals.…”

“…Music is a relatively complex signal due to its organization in time and frequency, possibly containing several instrumental and vocal elements to provide depth and variety to the feedback signal [36]. A general criticism leveled against such "aesthetic approaches" to sonification is that the interpretation of the underlying data is more difficult [29], [30] and in the case of music entails the learning of a new "sonic grammar" [38]. It has, however, been argued that there is a cultural or aesthetic baseline in popular music systems, which is accessible to untrained listeners and allows them to appreciate music with minimal cognitive overhead in the absence of formal training [38].…”