Interactions - March/April 2012

• Value map used in the project.

familiar with the users’ cultural context. Unlike cultural dimensions, value maps are based on fieldwork in the context of use, focus on technology, and are not limited to any predefined set of values. As such, they can provide more accurate representations of value for design purposes.

As a researcher, I found doing user research in Tanzania both a challenging and rewarding experience that provided many insights into interaction design. In a similar way, when looking at a future of HCI that appears more cross-cultural than ever, one can see many problems but also plenty of opportunities. Learning how culture affects what matters to people helps designers better understand their users. At the same time, it can challenge designers’ own beliefs about what technology is for and how it should be designed.

March + April 2012

ENDNOTES:

1. Hofstede, G. and Hofstede, G. J. Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind. 2nd edition. McGraw-Hill, 2005. 2. Ratner, C. and Hui, L. Theoretical and methodological problems in cross-cultural psychology. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour 33, 1 (2003), 67-94. 3. Sajavaara, K. and Lehtonen. J. The silent Finn revisited. In Silence: Interdisciplinary Perspectives. A. Jaworski, ed. Walter de Gruyter, 1997, 263-284. 4. Davies, C. A. Reflexive Ethnography: A Guide to Researching Selves and Others. Routledge, New York, 1999. 5. Cockton, G. Designing worth is worth designing. Proc. of the Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction. 2006, 166-174. 6. Honold, P. Culture and context: An empirical study for the development of a framework for the elicitation of cultural influence in product usage. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction 12, 34 (2000), 327-345.

interactions

and question the ethnocentric views of the designer, there was a conscious focus on value [ 5] in the user research. I studied the positive and negative value the local students associated with mobile phones mainly through interviews, supported by observations about how mobile phones were presented and discussed in the local newspapers and on operator websites.

In interaction design, designers need to understand what the users value, but they also have to convey that understanding to developers and other stakeholders, many of whom may never have experienced the field. In addition, user requirements or needs alone may not be enough to convince stakeholders who are not familiar with the background behind the needs [ 6]. Thus, there is a need for value representations that show what is important to users and why.

In this project, I used a value
map (shown here) that illustrates
both the benefits and drawbacks of
mobile phones as seen by univer-
sity students in Tanzania. Pros and
cons were often two sides of the
same coin: For example, students
saw the reachability provided by
mobile phones as a positive thing
because it allowed them to stay
informed about family matters at
all times, but they also saw it as
a negative thing because it dis-
tracted them from their studies.
The positive and negative values in
value maps were supplemented by
contextual factors that explained
why users found particular issues
relevant. In the case of Tanzanian
students, the positive value of
mobile phones was highlighted
by the significance of family and
relatives as their main support
network, the fact that students
were often studying far from their
families and were able to visit them
only between the school years,
and the way in which informa-
tion at the university was spread
through personal communication.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Minna Kamppuri is a postdoctoral researcher in the School of Computing at the University of Eastern Finland. Her research concerns cross-cultural design and inclusive design.