Module 3: Data Gathering,

Establishing Requirements,
Analysis, Interpretation and
Presentation
Establishing Requirements

What are Requirements?

A requirement is a statement about an intended product that

specifies what it should do or how it should perform.

One of the aims of the requirements activity is to make the

requirements as specific, unambiguous, and clear as possible.

Requirements are things/ tasks needed to be accomplished as well

as they're used as a criterion to see if the final ready system fits
requirements.

Different types of Requirement

Interaction design involves understanding the functionality required

and the constraints under which the product must operate or be
developed, hence we are concerned with a wide range of
requirements.

Data requirements capture the type, volatility, size/amount,

persistence, accuracy, and value of the required data.

Functional Requirements

These requirements specify what a system must do. What

functions and processes it must implement.

Functional requirements are sort of direct requirements.

Eg: functional requirements for a video game could be what

virtual objects to be used, what should be the hierarchy of
gameplay, tips and tricks etc.

Non - functional requirements

Module 3 Data Gathering, Establishing Requirements, Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation 1

 Non - functional requirements usually tend to put constraints
upon the development.

These are a sort of indirect requirements.

Non functional requirement examples are: quality, scalability,

portability etc.

Eg: For a video game, a non - functional requirement could be

the platform it runs upon, what technology to be used or the
due date of development completion.

Domain requirements

Domain requirements are a kind of functional requirement

which a particular domain will require no matter what.

Eg: For a calculator, the basic mathematical operations (+, -, /,

*, % etc.) are a must. But including weight conversion, currency
conversion, BMI calculation etc. are functional requirements.

Environmental Requirements

This refers to the circumstances in which the interactive

product will operate.

There are 4 aspects to environmental requirements: Physical,

Social, Organizational, Technical.

Physical

This describe the physical environment which the system

will need. Some systems need cooler environments, are
meant to be remotely operated etc.

Such physicals needs are described in this aspect.

Social

This aspect refers to how defining that how the system

should interact and communicate with the other systems
and users.

For example the social requirement could be that many

systems/ users need to access and read data at once.
Hence, sharing data etc.

Organizational

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 This aspect of environmental requirements refer to the
organizational needs or things to be added to system to
adapt to the organization easily.

For example, a particular organization can specify some

requirements which are related to their organizational
structure, organizational resources, facilities and utilities
etc.

Technical

This refers to specifying what technologies are needed to

be used, or even which platform etc.

Persona/ Profile/ User Requirements

System requirements also change with with users.

For example, a novice user will require step-by-step

instructions. An expert, on the other hand, will require a flexible
interaction with more wide-ranging powers of control.

Usability Goals and User Experience Goals as defined in earlier

module are important requirements.

Five Key Issues to overcome for successful data gathering

These are the five issues in data gathering techniques

Setting Goals

There are many different reasons for gathering data, and before
beginning it is important to identify specific goals for the study.

Goals impact the data gathering and analysis techniques we use.

Once the goals have been set, you can concentrate on what data
to look for and what to do with it once it is gathered.

Identifying Participants

Depending upon the goals you will need to identify the people you
require to gather data from. These fitting people are called
'population' and the process of choosing them is called 'sampling'.

Random sampling includes selecting people randomly. Stratified

sampling is where population can be divided into classes.

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 Convenience sampling/ volunteer panel includes anyone who was
ready to be a participant rather than who was needed to be.

Probabilistic sampling is where the statistical tests and

generalization is possible. Whereas, non - probabilistic sampling is
where it is not possible to get robust generalizations.

Relationship with Participants

Here the relationship between the person gathering data and the
one providing data is important.

It is important that the relationship between them is purely

professional, to avoid biases and issues.

One way of ensuring such is to have consent forms signed.

Consent forms reassures the data provider that the data will be
used solely of the specified purposes and none other, and also it
assures that the gatherer has the consent of data provider to
publish and use this data.

Sometimes incentives are also provided to the data provider, for

the mentioned help he/ she provides.

Triangulation

Refers to the data investigation being done from 2 different

perspectives.

Triangulation of Types):

 Data - using different data sources, places and people etc.

 Investigators - different researchers (observers, interviewers,

etc.) have been used to collect and interpret data.

 Theory - use of different theoretical frameworks to analyze and

interpret.

 Method - to employ different data gathering techniques.

However, validation through triangulation is difficult to achieve.

Pilot Studies

A pilot study is a small trial run of the main study. The aim is to
make sure that the proposed method is viable before embarking on

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 the real study.

This is done because the participants are unpredictable.

Potential problems can be identified in advance so that they can be

corrected.

Getting comments from peers is quick and inexpensive and can be

a substitute for a pilot study.

It is important to note that anyone involved in a pilot study cannot

be involved in the main study. Why? Because they will know more
about the study and this can distort the results.

Data recording

Capturing data is necessary so that the results of a data gathering

session may be taken away and analyzed.

Data recording Approaches

COUNT - 3

Notes + Photographs

least technical and most flexible way of recording data

Disadvantages with notes include that it can be difficult and

tiring to write (or type) and listen or observe at the same time.

If appropriate, photograph(s) and short videos, captured via

smartphones or other handheld devices, of artifacts, events,
and the environment can be used to supplement notes and
hand-drawn sketches, provided permission has been given.

Audio + Photographs

Audio recording can be a useful alternative to note taking and

is less intrusive than video.

Here, interviewer to pay more attention to the interviewee.

But transcribing a lot of audio data is time-consuming.

If you are using audio recording as the main or only data

collection technique then it is important that the quality is
good.

Video

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 Video has the advantage of capturing both visual and audio
data but video recording has some additional planning issues:

 Deciding whether to fix the camera's position or use a

roving recorder.

 Deciding where to point the camera in order to capture

what is required.

 Understanding the impact of the recording on participants.

It is often assumed that video recording will have an impact
on participants and their behavior.

Techniques for Data Gathering

COUNT - 7

Now to produce the above explained types of requirements necessary

for proper Interaction design, we first need to collect data regarding
those and analyze it and form requirements.

The choice of data gathering techniques for the requirements activity

is influenced by several factors including the nature of the task, the
participants, the analyst, and the resources available.

It is usual for more than one data gathering technique to be used in

order to provide different perspectives.

Data gathering techniques are listed and explained below:

Interview

Interviews are good for exploring issues, and semi-structured or

unstructured interviews are often used.

It is important for development team members to meet

stakeholders and for users to feel involved.

Unstructured Interview

They are exploratory and are more like conversations around a

particular topic; they
often go into considerable depth.

Interviewer has much control over the interview process.

No particular expectation about the format or content of

answers.

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 One of the skills necessary for conducting an unstructured
interview is getting the balance right between making sure that
answers to relevant questions are obtained.

A benefit of unstructured interviews is that they generate rich

data that is often interrelated and complex.

Can be time consuming to analyze.

Structured Interview

In structured interviews, the interviewer asks predetermined

questions similar to those in a questionnaire, and the same
questions are used with each participant so the study is
standardized.

Closed questions work well if the range of possible answers is

known.

Structured interviews are only really useful when the goals are
clearly understood and specific questions can be identified.

Semi-structured Interviews

Semi-structured interviews combine features of structured and

unstructured interviews and use both closed and open
questions.

The interviewer starts with preplanned questions and then

probes the interviewee to say more until no new relevant
information is forthcoming.

Focus Group

Focus groups are good for gaining a consensus view and

highlighting areas of conflict and disagreement during the
requirements activity.

It is common for the stake holders in the organization of being

unware of the fact that others have different understanding of a
particular issue.

Hence, to evaluate better alternatives focus groups are necessary.

These include selected participant and are carefully evaluated.

Questionnaire

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 Questionnaires are a well-established technique for collecting
demographic data and users’ opinions.

Effort and skill are needed to ensure that questions are clearly
worded and the data collected can be analyzed efficiently.

Questionnaire questions and structured interview questions are

similar, so how do you know when to use which technique?

Use questionnaire if respondent is motivated to answer, or else use

interview.

It can be harder to develop good questionnaire questions

compared with structured interview questions because the
interviewer is not available to explain them or to clarify any
ambiguities.

Questionnaires or surveys can be used to obtain users reviews and

needs as well as to select people to interview further.

In a questionnaire the order of the question should be proper and

different versions should be prepared.

Different types of responses of a questionnaire question can be:

 Check boxes and Range - used where answers can be

predictable.

 Rating Scales

 Likert Scales - used to measure opinions etc.

 Semantic Differential Scale - Eg; a scale from 'Ugly to Pretty'

with numbers in between. The participant is asked to place a
cross in one of a number of positions
between the two extremes.

Ugly 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Pretty

Observation

Direct Observations

In the requirements activity, observation of participants in their

natural setting is used to understand the nature of the tasks
and the context in which they are performed.

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 Sometimes the observation is carried out by trained observers
and reported to design team or or with a member of the design
team.

Framework for Direct Observation in Field

If the Observer is not much experienced he/ she focuses on

The Person, Place and Thing.

Else various other context like Space, Actors, Objects,

Events time, Goals can be focused upon.

Considering the degree of participation there are two types

of observers: Active and Passive Greater participation==
Active else Passive)

Framework for Direct Observation in Controlled Environment

The basic idea and technique of data gathering are same as

in field observation but the difference is how the technique
is used.

In controlled environment the emphasis is on the details of

what individuals do, while in the field the context is
important and the focus is on how people interact with
each other, the technology, and their environment.

The arrangement of equipment with respect to the

participant is important in
a controlled study.

Planning and conducting Observation

It includes deciding the level of participation to adopt; how

to make a record of the data; how to gain acceptance in
the group being studied; how to handle sensitive issues
such as cultural differences or access to private spaces;
and how to ensure that the study uses different
perspectives.

It will be easier to relate to some people than others and it

will be tempting to pay attention to those who receive you
well, but everyone in the group needs to be attended to.

Module 3 Data Gathering, Establishing Requirements, Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation 9

 It is important to check the notes and other records and to
write up experiences
and observations at the end of each day.

As notes are reviewed, personal opinion should be

separated.

It is also a good idea to check observations with an

informant or members of the group.

Indirect Observations

Indirect observations consists of previously logged Interactions

and Diaries etc.

Indirect observations are used rarely. In some cases where the

project is iterative or is evolving from a previous product.

Diaries

Participants are asked to write a diary of their activities on

a regular basis, e.g. what they did, when they did it, what
they found hard or easy, and what their reactions were to
the situation.

Diaries are useful when participants are scattered and

unreachable in person, for example as in many web-based
projects.

Diaries do not take up much researcher time to collect

data; they
do not require special equipment or expertise; and they are
suitable for long-
term studies

The use of multiple media in diaries has been explored.

They found that images resulted in more specific recall than
other media, but audio was useful for capturing events
when taking a picture was too awkward.

Interaction Logs and Web Analytics

Interaction logging involves installing software on a device

that is being used to record users’ activity in a log that can
be examined later.

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 A variety of actions may be recorded like key presses,
audio, video etc.

A key advantage of logging activity is that it is unobtrusive

provided system performance is not affected. However,
visualization tools are needed to explore and analyze this
data quantitatively and qualitatively.

Web analytics matlab same logging but only when

interacting with websites.

Documentation Study

Documentations like Manuals contain data of great value and also

instructions and regulations for governing tasks.

Documents provide a better view of structure and legislation but

daily user centered practices must be taken into account and
augmented to it.

A limitation to this approach is that the stake holders are not

involved. Hence, is rarely used.

Research of similar Systems

As the name suggests, here we look at previously developed

systems to get prompt requirements.

Another reason to look up similar systems is to obtain alternative

designs.

Contextual Inquiry

This is an approach very close to observation.

It combines observation with interview.

Here, the users is asked standard questions in it's natural setting/

working environment and is observed as questions are answered.

Contextual inquiry is a popular technique for uncovering

requirements, and in particular in uncovering requirements relating
to the context of use.

It is tailored to gather data that can be used in design and it

follows an apprenticeship model: the designer works as an
apprentice to the user.

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 Contextual inquiry rests on four main principles:

 Context - emphasizes the importance of going to the

workplace and seeing what happens.

 Partnership - states that the developer and the user should

collaborate.

 Interpretation - the observations must be interpreted.

 Focus - related to keeping the data gathering focused on goals

and objectives.

Guidelines to gather Data

 Focus on identifying the stakeholders’ needs.

 Involve all stakeholders.

 When involving the stake holders, it is necessary to have proper

procedure to carry out such discussions, record important points
and alternating views using various tasks, props etc.

Data Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation (For this section

simultaneously refer any book too.)

Analysis

The kind of analysis that can be performed on a set of data will be

influenced by the goals identified and gathered data.

Initially data analysis involves identifying patterns or other

statistical figures to summarize and understand data.

This is followed by more detailed work involving structural

frameworks/ theories.

Interpretation

This step takes the outputs of analysis step as input to process

interpretations about the gathered data.

Using the patterns or the data which is converted into information

can be used to draw knowledge for the system.

Presentation

This is the step where the techniques to present the data to design
and development team are chosen.

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 The best way to present your findings is equally skilled task, and
depends on your goals.

Here, various techniques of data summarization, pattern

visualization are used to give the designers and developers an idea
and context of what is to be done (requirements).

Techniques for Analyzing

Quantitative Analysis

Quantitative analysis uses numerical methods to ascertain the

magnitude,
amount, or size of something.

It uses complex statistical computation and analysis. Some

simple statistics consist of Average Mean, Median, Mode) and
Percentage.

Median and mode are less well-known but are very useful.

Averages → Overview Info. Quantitative data can be converted

into dataset.

Excel is often used as it is commonly available. Producing a

graphical representation of the data helps to get an overall
view of the data and any patterns it contains.

Qualitative Analysis

Qualitative analysis focuses on the nature of something and

can be represented by themes, patterns, and stories.

The first step in qualitative analysis is to gain an overall

impression of the data and to start looking for patterns.

Types

Identifying recurring patterns and themes

The study goals provide an orienting focus for the

formulation of themes.

The affinity diagram, which is used in contextual design

(is one common technique used in qualitative analysis.

It aims to organize individual ideas and insights into a

hierarchy showing common structures and themes.

Module 3 Data Gathering, Establishing Requirements, Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation 13

 Categorizing data

Elements identified in the data are usually categorized

depending upon goals. The principle here is that the
data is divided up into elements and each element is
then categorized.

Another is deciding on the appropriate granularity for

the categories, which is also dependent on goals.

The categorization scheme used must be reliable so

that the analysis can be
replicated. Iska verification aise hota hai: Do logon ko
same scheme dete hai aur same sample data aur bolte
categorization karo. Agar same results aay toh pass
varna scheme fail.

Analyzing critical incidents

In interaction design, critical incident analysis has been

used in a variety of ways, but the main focus is to
identify specific incidents that are significant, and then
to focus on these and analyze them in detail, using the
rest of the data collected as context to inform
interpretation.

These may be identified by the users during a

retrospective discussion of a recent event, or by an
observer either through studying video footage, or in
real time.

Software Tools for Analysis

These typically provide facilities to associate labels with

sections of data, search the data for key words or phrases,
investigate the relationships between different themes or
categories, and help to develop the coding scheme further.

Some tools can also generate graphical representations.

In addition, some provide help with techniques such as content

analysis and sometimes very sophisticated mechanisms to
show the occurrence and co-occurrence of words or phrases.

Module 3 Data Gathering, Establishing Requirements, Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation 14

 Two well-known tools that support some of these data analysis
activities are Nvivo and Atlas. SPSS Statistical Package for the
Social Sciences) is one of the more popular quantitative
analysis packages that supports the use of statistical tests.

Theoretical Frameworks for Analysis

Grounded Theory

Grounded theory is an approach to qualitative data analysis

which aims to develop a theory that fits a set of collected
data. In this context, theory is: “a set of well-developed
concepts related through statements of relationship, which
together constitute an integrated framework that can be
used to explain or predict phenomena”.

First data is collected and analyzed to identify categories,

then that analysis may lead to further data collection and
analysis to extend and refine the categories and so on, until
no new insights emerge and the theory is well developed.

Category identification and definition is achieved by coding

the data

Open coding

The process through which categories, their properties,

and dimensions are discovered.

Axial coding

Process of systematically fleshing out categories and

relating them to their subcategories.

Selective coding

Process of refining and integrating categories to form a

larger theoretical scheme. The categories are organized
around one central category that forms the backbone
of the theory.

Distributed Cognition

A distributed cognition analysis results in an event-driven

description which emphasizes information and its
propagation through the cognitive system under study.

Module 3 Data Gathering, Establishing Requirements, Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation 15

 The description produced may cover a period of a day, an
hour, or only minutes, depending on the study's focus. For
the longer periods, verbal descriptions are primarily used.

Important part of doing a distributed cognition analysis is

to have a deep understanding of the work domain that is
being studied.

It should be stressed that there is not one single way of

doing a distributed cognition analysis, nor is there an off-
the-shelf manual that can be followed.

It provides an analytic framework and a set of concepts to

describe what is happening at a higher level of abstraction.

In largescale and safety-critical projects, where more time

and resources are available, it can be a valuable analytic
tool to use.

Activity Theory

It is a product of Soviet psychology that explains human

behavior in terms of our practical activity with the world.

Activity theory provides a framework that focuses analysis

around the concept of an activity and helps to identify
tensions between the different elements of the system.

AT models activities in a hierarchical way. At the bottom

level are operations, routinized behaviors that require little
conscious attention (e.g. rapid typing). At an intermediate
level are actions, behavior that is characterized by
conscious planning, e.g. producing a glossary. The top level
is the activity, and that provides a minimum meaningful
context for understanding the individual actions.

Activities can be identified on the basis of the motives that

elicit them, actions on the basis of conscious goals that
guide them, and operations by the conditions necessary to
attain the goals.

One of the biggest problems with doing an AT analysis is

working out when something should be described as a top-

Module 3 Data Gathering, Establishing Requirements, Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation 16

 level activity and when something is better described as a
lower-level action.

Techniques for Presentation

Rigorous Notations

Rigorous → clear syntax and semantics

A number of rigorous notations have been developed to

analyze, capture, and present information for interaction
design.

UML Unified Modeling Language) has stricter and more

precise syntax to be followed and is more often used to
specify internal software designs.

Disadvantages → ignores some aspects and precision.

To overcome their disadvantages, rigorous notations are

usually used in combination with stories.

Using Stories

Stories (also called narratives) are used extensively in

interaction design, both to communicate findings of
investigative studies, and as the basis for further development
such as product design or system enhancements.

Storytelling may be employed in three different ways.

First, participants may have told stories of their own. Second,

stories about participants may be employed. Third, stories may
be constructed from smaller anecdotes or repeated patterns
that are found in the data.

Any stories collected through data gathering may be used as

the basis for constructing scenarios.

Summarizing Findings

Clearly written reports with an overview at the beginning and a

detailed content list make for easy reading and a good
reference document.

Including anecdotes, quotations, pictures, and video clips helps

to bring the study to life, stimulate interests.

Module 3 Data Gathering, Establishing Requirements, Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation 17

 Task Description and Task Analysis (For this section
simultaneously refer any book too.)

Task Description

Due to the emphasis on involving users earlier in the development

lifecycle and the large number of new interactive products now
being developed, task descriptions are used throughout
development, from early requirements activities through
prototyping, evaluation, and testing.

Types

Scenarios

informal narrative description

describes human activities or tasks in a story that allows

exploration and discussion of contexts, needs, and
requirements.

Understanding why people do things as they do and what

they are trying to achieve in the process allows us to
concentrate on the human activity.

The level of detail present in a scenario varies depending

on where in the development process they are being used.

Capturing scenarios of existing behavior and goals helps in

determining new scenarios and hence in gathering data
useful for establishing the new requirements.

Use cases

Use cases also focus on user goals, but the emphasis here
is on a user–
system interaction rather than the user's task itself.

A use case is associated with an actor, and it is the actor's

goal in using the system that the use case wants to capture.
In this technique, the main use case describes what is called
the normal course.

Use cases may be described graphically.

To develop a use case, first identify the actors, i.e. the

people or other systems that will be interacting with the

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 system under development. Then examine these actors and
identify their goal or goals in using the system. Each of
these will be a use case.

Essential use cases

Essential use cases were developed to combat what they

see as the limitations of both scenarios and use cases.

Essential use cases (also referred to sometimes as task

cases) represent abstractions from scenarios, i.e. they
represent a more general case than a scenario embodies,
and try to avoid the assumptions of a traditional use case.

An essential use case is a structured narrative consisting of

three parts: a name that expresses the overall user
intention, a stepped description of user actions, and a
stepped description of system responsibilities. i.e. what the
user is responsible for and what the system is to do.

Instead of actors, essential use cases are associated with

user roles. An actor could be another system, whereas a
user role is a role that a number of different people may
play when using the system.

Task Analysis

Task analysis is used mainly to investigate an existing situation.

It is used to analyze the underlying rationale and purpose of what

people are doing: what are they trying to achieve, why are they
trying to achieve it, and how are they going about it?

Task analysis is an umbrella term that covers techniques for

investigating cognitive processes and physical actions, at a high
level of abstraction and in minute detail.

Hierarchical Task Analysis

It involves breaking a task down into subtasks and then into

sub-subtasks and so on.

These are then grouped together as plans that specify how the
tasks might be performed in a real situation.

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 HTA focuses on the physical and observable actions that are
performed, and includes looking at actions that are not related
to software or an interactive product at all.

User Goals → Main Tasks → Sub Tasks ............. → Non divisible

Tasks.

If a task is not decomposed any further then a thick horizontal

line is drawn underneath the corresponding box. Plans are also
shown in this graphical form. They are written alongside the
vertical line emitting from the task being decomposed.

Module 3 Data Gathering, Establishing Requirements, Analysis, Interpretation and Presentation 20