Title page for ETD etd-05312005-162649

Type of Document

Master's Thesis

Author

Narayan, Sajitha

URN

etd-05312005-162649

Title

Comparison of Various Display Representation Formats for Older Adults Using Inlab and Remote Usability Testing.

Degree

Master of Science

Department

Industrial and Systems Engineering

Advisory Committee

Advisor Name	Title
Dr Tonya Smith Jackson	Committee Chair
Dr Mary Beth Rosson	Committee Member
Dr Maury Nussbaum	Committee Member

Keywords

Seniors
Abstract
Displays
Inlab testing
Remote testing
Tabular
Graphical
Concrete

Date of Defense

2004-03-29

Availability

unrestricted

Abstract

The population of seniors is growing and will continue to increase in the next decade.
Computer technology holds the promise of enhancing the quality of life and independence of
older people as it may increase their ability to perform a variety of tasks. This is true for elderly. By the year 2030, people age 65 or older will comprise 22% of the population in the United States. As the population shifts so that a greater percentage are middle-aged and older adults, and as dependence on computer technology increases, it becomes more crucial to understand how to design computer displays for these older age groups.

The research has compared various display representation formats to try to find out which
is the best way to represent information to seniors in any form of display and the reason for the preferences. The formats compared include high and low density screens for abstract icon representation, concrete icon representation, tabular representation and graphical representation.This research also endeavored to study the effectiveness of remote usability testing as compared to inlab testing for seniors.

Results indicated that density of screen is a very important factor affecting the
performance of older adults. Density effect showed statistical significance F (1,112)=8.934, p< .05 from further post-hoc analysis that was conducted. Although significant results were not
obtained, different formats of display representations may still be an area worth pursuing. Also it was noted that remote usability testing is not as effective as inlab testing for seniors in terms of time taken to conduct the study and the number of user comments collected. Implications, as
well as recommendations and conclusions, of the study are presented.

Files

Filename		Size	Approximate Download Time (Hours:Minutes:Seconds)
Filename		Size	28.8 Modem	56K Modem	ISDN (64 Kb)	ISDN (128 Kb)	Higher-speed Access
	SNarayanThesis.pdf	1.60 Mb	00:07:23	00:03:47	00:03:19	00:01:39	00:00:08