Man-Computer Interface Design Guidance: State of the Art*

A major literature survey investigated the state of the art in human factors in computer systems. The survey was concerned both with the status of human factors research in the area of user-computer interaction and with the current state of user-computer interaction technology and practices. The principal goal of the study was to determine the feasibility of human factors guidelines for interactive computer systems, and to investigate their possible form and content. Thus, the study addressed both the state of the art in the field and the information needs and problem-solving behavior of interactive system designers, since these personnel would be the primary users of guidelines. It is concluded that insufficient data exist for the development of a “quantitative reference handbook” in this area, and that that form of presentation may not be appropriate anyway. On the other hand, a “human factors design guide” – which discusses issues, alternatives, and methods in the context of the design process – appears both feasible and needed.