Human Computer Interaction

5341 Words22 Pages
INF420H: Human Computer Interaction Assignment 2 Question 1 In designing for children, people tend to assume that kids are creative, intelligent, and capable of great things if they are given good tools and support. However, they may be at a disadvantage, because they no longer remember the physical and cognitive differences of being a child. (Bruckman & Bandlow, 2002) Lazar, 2007, lists 3 aspects of children’s behavior that differentiate them from adult users both physically and cognitively. These 3 aspects of a child’s behavior or development that are overlooked by designers are: 1) Children’s information processing and motor skills, specifically relating to their difficulties selecting small targets with a mouse. 2) Children’s searching and browsing skills largely due to the fact that they have difficulty with spelling, typing, navigating and composing queries. 3) How children prefer to find things because children want the ability to select content on their own. In this essay, I will explain what each of the 3 aspects of children’s behavior, listed above, entails. I will also delve into why it is important to take these 3 aspects into account when designing for children. Lastly, we will look at how the problems associated with them can be addressed. A. What do the aspects of children’s behaviour or development entail? A1. Children’s information processing and motor skills Young children process information more slowly than adults, and this affects their motor skills. Information processing speed increases exponentially with age. (Lazar, 2007) In their early years (2–7 years), children’s attention spans are limited, they have limited reading skills, and they usually have difficulty operating a keyboard and mouse, especially when selecting and clicking targets, causing them to click inaccurately. (Meiselwitz, Wentz & Lazar, 2010) These poor motor skills
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