HCI History

As has been well documented in a number of excellent articles [ 5, 7, 8, 9], HCI emerged in the 1970s as a field of inquiry as a result of the increasing penetration of computers and computational devices into the workplace. First came mainframe computers, which required considerable training to use and much maintenance, followed by the creation of the personal computer. PCs became increasingly available in offices and were promoted for home use during this time. Due to growing potential for computational devices in all walks of life, and the awareness of the difficulties people had using them, it was not long before the need for “people-oriented computers” was asserted [ 10]. And thus the field of HCI began to emerge in the mid- to late-1970s, drawing researchers from disparate disciplines, including human factors and ergonomics, engineering, computer science, and psychology. A problem-centered, applied area of research, HCI needed this amalgam of perspectives and opinions, viewpoints, and methods. More a guild of researchers from various disciplines than a discipline in itself, the 1970s and 1980s saw a growing need for this area of focus in research and development. Consequently, calls for courses to train people in methods and for the development of a sensibility around the complexities of understanding human-device interaction followed. During the late 1970s and 1980s, the field gained momentum through the publication of academic texts (e.g., [ 11, 12]), the establishment of university-level courses, and the creation of professional bodies like ACM’s Special Interest Group in Computer Human Interaction (SIGCHI) and its associated conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (better known to those who read interactions simply as CHI). Of course, the establishment of interest groups and courses and conferences on topics that could broadly be construed as HCI was a worldwide phenomenon. Examples include the Interact conference, which was hosted for the first time in London in 1984, underwritten by the International Federation for Information Processing and chaired by Brian Shackel; and the establishment of interest groups like the British Computer Society’s HCI group. Similar efforts emerged in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and elsewhere.

SIGCHI was formed in 1982 by renaming and refocusing an already existing special interest group, the Special Interest Group on Social and Behavioral Computing (SIGSOC). The first CHI conference was held in Gaithersburg, Maryland in 1982 and was chaired by Bill Curtis and Jean Nichols [ 13]. By the mid- to late 1980s, core texts were being published, broadening the field of HCI and discussing how to more systematically consider people—users—in the design of interactive systems. Examples include The Psychology of Human Computer Interaction by Stuart Card, Tom Moran, and Allen Newell, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year; User Centered System Design: New Perspectives on Human-computer Interaction, edited by Don Norman and Steve Draper and published in 1986 [ 11]; and Ben Shneiderman’s 1987 book Designing the User Interface: Strategies for Effective Human-Computer Interaction [ 12].

HCI now has a major role in developing products for what Jonathan Grudin refers to as “ discretionary use” by everyday users [ 1].

HCI specialists still focus on the issues that gave birth to the field: Are technologies learnable, usable, useful, reliable, comprehensible, ethical? We are still concerned with assessing whether technologies serve, engage, and satisfy people and extend their capabilities, or frustrate, thwart, and confound them. While HCI has always been associated with “usability,” its remit has always been broader and continues to grow: Systems and applications must also be aesthetically attractive and emotionally appealing, and they must provide the right level of challenge and satisfaction for users. Further, many devices are becoming fashion objects: They lead, track, and follow the mercurial world of fashion. Psychological, sociological, and cultural questions remain pertinent: As the technological landscape changes, which human characteristics, capabilities, and traits remain stable and which do not? Which technologies bring advantages to some and disadvantages to others, and how might we level the playing field to provide access and success for all? Which technologies and interaction styles survive the test of time and which do not?

The new issues emerging from
the development of new technolo-
gies and a continually expanding
user population require HCI progres-
sionals: practitioners, researchers,
and educators who are willing to
keep step with technological prog-
ress and master new design and
evaluation methods and new tech-
nical competencies while maintain-
ing the professional and intellectual
values, tenets, and perspectives that
are unique to our field. Universities,
professional bodies like ACM, and
professional trainers must keep
abreast of advances. At the same
time, an increasing number of com-
panies and universities in countries
across the world are embracing
HCI and welcome knowledge about
how HCI education is structured in
regions with an established history
in HCI education as an appropriate
starting point for building new pro-
grams molded to their own needs.