Capture the car!: qualitative in-situ methods to grasp the automotive context

In terms of human computer interaction (HCI), the car interior is a space, which can be divided into three areas: the driver's area, the front seat area, and the back seat area. So far HCI researchers have primary focused on the driver, and how in-car electronic devices can be designed to assist the driver in order to increase safety and comfort. We propose that for investigating interactive technology in the car in a holistic way, all three areas have to be taken into account. For that purpose we argue for an increased usage of qualitative in-situ studies, which have been hardly applied in automotive user interface research. So far the HCI community has mainly focused on laboratory studies utilizing driving simulators. Despite the broad range of available field study methods, such as ethnographic and self-reporting studies, the adaption of these methods for the automotive context is challenging due to the specific characteristics of this environment. For instance, cars provide only very limited space, the environment is constantly changing while driving and the driver must not be distracted from driving safely. As a consequence, a lack of experience exists, on how in-situ methods should be applied to cars. In this paper we describe three qualitative in-situ studies, we conducted to research the driver, the front seat passenger, and the rear seat passenger spaces. All three studies used a different method tailored to fit these three areas best. To share our experiences and insights we discuss the strengths and pitfalls of each method.