Computer display menus

Abstract

Whereas menu selection remains as one of the most popular forms of computer-initiated dialogue, very little is known about the effects of menu structure on selection performance. Menu hierarchies can be arranged with many items on a menu and a minimum number of menus (breadth) or with few options on a menu and several levels (depth). In the present study, subjects searched through one of four verbal hierarchies developed by Miller (1981), each with 64 words at the lowest level. The deepest hierarchy consisted of binary choices at six levels (2⁶) while in the broadest array (64¹) all target words were presented in a single menu. Intermediate levels of breadth and depth were eight choices at two levels (8²) and four choices at three levels (4³). Two arrays were used in the 64¹ condition, one in which categorical relationships between words were maintained by presenting all members of a category in the same area of the display (CAT64), and one in which location of words was randomly determined (RAN64). Trend analyses on menu structures 2⁶, 4³,8² and CAT64 indicated that search speed and accuracy improved as a function of menu breadth.