Promoting Communication and Participation through Enactments of Interaction Design Solutions - A Study Case for Validating Requirements for Digital TV

This paper discusses the use of theatrical techniques in two experiments to attain the following objectives of interaction design: to communicate the cross-cultural users’ needs and expectations for iDTV (interactive Digital TeleVision) services and to explore new ideas in a participatory way. These two objectives are particularly important when systems are involved that are unknown to people, and professionals need to gather the requirements of such systems. In the first experiment, we showed the implication of stories told through theater in order to communicate the purposes of iDTV services to the audience. In the second experiment, we used role-playing in participatory interaction design sessions to explore new ideas with users. The results are described by discussing the strengths and weaknesses of this approach.