Making life easier for computer novices: some factors determining initial performance

Abstract

A link between subjects' preferences for certain labels over others in an Electronic Mail System (EMS) and their performance was established in an earlier study conducted in a pen/paper format. The same tasks were completed on a computer in this study to test the extent to which pen/paper studies may be indicative of subsequent performance on a computer. This link was found to be quite strong. Three further experiments, also carried out on the computer, isolated two other factors of importance for novices in their initial interaction with a computer. Pre-experimental training on a single task eliminated any effects of vocabulary, regardless of whether or not the serial position of items presented on the screen was randomized between trials, and of whether subjects saw the same or different lists of labels in the pre-experimental and the experimental phase. It was concluded that position constancy of items presented on the screen and knowledge of task requirements are as important for determining initial performance for novices as vocabulary.