Interacting with Computers 18 (2006) 820852
www.elsevier.com/locate/intcom
Towards culture-centred designSiu-Tsen Shen a,*, Martin Woolley
b, Stephen Prior cDepartment of Multimedia Design, National Formosa
University of Science and Technology, 64 Wen-Hua Road, Hu-Wei 632,
Yun-Lin County, Taiwan, ROC b Central Saint Martins College,
University of the Arts London, Southampton Row, London WC1, UK c
Department of Product Design and Engineering, School of Lifelong
Learning and Education, Middlesex University Trent Park Campus,
Bramley Road, London N14 4YZ, UK Received 12 November 2005;
accepted 14 November 2005 Available online 26 January 2006a
Abstract This paper addresses culturally rooted factors within
user interface design. The design implications of globalisation are
discussed, together with the related processes of
internationalisation, localisation, glocalisation, iconisation and
culturalisation, in order to establish a basis for a new approach
to HCI design. The potential for a more diverse culturecentred,
design-based systemCulture-Centred Design (CCD) is introduced, and
a CCD process developed. A redesigned computer interface,
incorporating a consistent and culturally rooted metaphor for a
Chinese user target group is discussed. A culturally specic garden
metaphor is developed and applied as an alternative to the current
global ofce or desktop metaphor. A working demonstration of the
interface is piloted with a group of Chinese users to assess its
success in terms of interactivity, usability and cultural
signicance. The overall results of the rst two evaluation phases
have shown very positive outcomes for the use of the CCD system and
Chinese garden metaphor. q 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights
reserved.Keywords: Culture; Design process; Iconography; Metaphor;
User-interface design; Human computer interaction (HCI)
* Corresponding author. Tel.: C886 5 631 5870; fax: C886 5 631
5875. E-mail address: [email protected] (S.-T. Shen).
0953-5438/$ - see front matter q 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights
reserved. doi:10.1016/j.intcom.2005.11.014
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
821
1. Introduction Chinese technological developments in the eld of
information and communication engineering will have a major impact
on our everyday lives (Parasuram, 2003). It is predicted that the
Chinese economy will surpass that of the US by 2050; many
economists think that they may do it much sooner. According to the
most recent statistical survey report on Internet development in
China, by the end of July 2005, there were approximately 45.6
million computer hosts and 103 million Internet users in China.
However, this only accounts for a penetration rate of 7.9% of the
population. Even with this low rate, China is second only to the
USA (224 million) in terms of the number of Internet users. If, as
predicted, China follows the Hong Kong model (70.7% penetration)
the number of Internet users will increase 10-fold over the next
decade. The implications of this expansion, on computing and HCI
will be dramatic (CNNIC, 2005). The supply of universal software
has played an important part in the promotion of globalisation, and
the standardisation of technology has had the obvious advantage of
compatibility. However, evidence has shown that the application of
a standardised interface posed usability problems for certain
ethnic groups, as the origins of its metaphors and visualisation
were largely foreign (Marcus, 2001). A sense of individualisation/
customisation was being offered only through a choice of preference
settings or themes, rather than culturally specic design options.
The majority of software is developed in, or contracted by the USA,
and its interfaces have therefore been based primarily on American
metaphors, representations, colour associations and navigational
logic. Ignoring the fact that for example, colour associations
differ widely from culture to culture, or that some cultures prefer
other text layouts to the West, which is left to right, top to
bottom oriented. Other cultural sensitivities include visual
representations such as the use of icons. The Japanese for instance
preferring to use no pictorial representations of body parts for
icons. In the quest, for compatibility through a level of
standardisation, there is a danger of a loss of cultural identity
and tradition. Examples are the traditional Japanese and Chinese
literature or calligraphy that is written right to left and books
that are read back to front. Through shortcomings in software it
has become difcult to realise this and subsequently it has become a
rarity in traditional media, such as newspapers, and is almost
non-existent in electronic media. Thereby, a signicant part of a
culture has been ignored and could possibly be lost because of
shortcomings in global software. Recent research conducted by
Legend Holdings Ltd has highlighted differences in colour
preferences amongst Chinese regions; with people from the southern
province preferring bright colours and people from the north more
subdued colours (Marcus, 2005). The power of interactive media such
as the Internet and computer software applications, which can
enrich individual experience in virtual space, has endangered a new
dimension of humancomputer interfaces. By graphical user
interfaces, networks and the virtual reality environment, the
distinction between the real and the virtual has become obscure.
Employment of the desktop metaphor, which was intended to help the
user interact with computers more intuitively, and make them easy
to use through visual representations such as windows, icons, menus
and buttons, is currently the standard interface design on personal
computers. However, the desktop, which in theory should
822
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
empower users to customise and personalise, according to their
cultural context; as manufacturers promise in their marketing
slogans, has been restricted by existing operating systems, which
only give the user a certain level of autonomy, such as freely
chosen multiple languages, character sets and national formats.
Examples of confused icons, which include the function of the
Macintosh trashcan and Finder, can be found in many publications
(Gentner and Nielsen, 1996). The discrepancy of the graphical
user-interface design that has failed to make the physical forms,
and the articial representations cohere between the reality and the
virtual world has eroded the connotation of user interface. Not
only the adaptation of iconic interfaces with which users are
familiar, has become a custom, but also user interface has turned
itself into another new semiotic language. The consequence is that
the more aesthetic and functional artefacts we create, the more
intricate ones we have. It is likely that the concept of
userfriendliness, which should enhance the usability of products,
has lost its original meaning. Marzano (2000) suggested that we are
in the midst of a shift from commodities to experiences in terms of
the economic order that is parallel to Maslows hierarchy of human
needs, from satisfying rst basic needs, then intellectual,
emotional and cultural needs to reaching the highest level,
self-actualisation. Only through a better understanding of peoples
sensorial perceptions and cultural values, will we be able to move
into a new paradigm of quality where products have added value,
meeting users true needs and making their experience more
meaningful (Marzano, 2000). Given this consideration, we therefore
envisage a new perspective of user-interface design, which is the
challenge of designing a cultural-centred interface that goes
beyond the desktop and embraces our character and imagination in a
more natural way. It has been widely acknowledged that established
design approaches with its standards, rules and guidelines, falls
short with respect to issues relating to the cultural context.
Cross-cultural user research has shown a signicant difference in
results by testing individuals from various socio-cultural
backgrounds on accuracy and duration of task performance, user
experience and user satisfaction. One effective tool at the
disposal of the designer is the application of suitable metaphors
within the design process. In order for a metaphor to work it would
need to be localised and culturally rooted (Evers, 2002; Nielsen
and Del Galdo, 1996). Too often a sub-metaphor is applied out of
context of the overarching one and is open to misinterpretation.
For example, the my computer icon of MS Windows has proved to have
lead to much confusion as it suggests ownership which often is not
the case. In some cultures the idea of something that can be
retrieved from the trash bin after it has been deleted seems
illogical and degrading. Other inuences for successful
user-interface design include good information visualisation that
included the understanding of semiotics (iconic design) and
aesthetics (colour, spatial layout and composition, and
typography), a clear navigational ow (direction of visual scanning)
and interaction (user experience). All these issues are carefully
addressed and examined in the following sections. The primary goal
of a user interface should be to support users who play multiple
roles in accordance with their contextual environment and purposes
of use. In most cases, user interface should be simple, natural to
use and enjoyable for the user to interact with, adjustable and
sensitive enough to deal with cultural issues, and embedded with
added values that make the users experience richer and more
meaningful.
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
823
1.1. Globalisation In 1967, Marshall McLuhan (19111980) coined
the term Global village in which time has ceased and space has
vanished (McLuhan and Fiore, 1967). He suggested that the
electronic media of the future would unify the human race by one
collective perception of the world. In his view the advent of
print, which was a forerunner of the Industrial Revolution, had
fragmented society through reading in isolation. Based on a concept
of sender and receiver media such as television, personal computers
and the Internet further extend our senses to a global scale
(McLuhan, 1994). However, this sender/ receiver society is based on
a one-way system whereby the sender superimposes its global
message, ignorant of its context and sidelining interaction. The
Internet has supercially substituted tribal (ethical) or national
(geographical) communities for virtual ones to which individuals
with common interests are linked. In a way society has traded its
local cultural identities for new global ones and has transformed
into product afnity groups or hobby/fan clubs regardless of
cultural and religious background. The members or netizens of these
newly created cyburbia remain largely anonymous and as a group lack
identity across the wider community. The effects of globalisation
are becoming increasingly evident. Globalisation has achieved a
level of homogeneity of cultures through the inuence of
multinationals and of mass media communication and information. It
could be said that globalisation strives for cultural compatibility
and destroys its diversity in the process, by denying or ignoring
cultural identity. On the other hand it could also be argued that
some originally homogenous societies are becoming heterogeneous by
becoming multicultural societies. Some societies have embraced
globalisation, while others try to defy it or are selective. 1.1.1.
Internationalisation Technically speaking, internationalisation is
the process of developing an application whose feature design and
code design do not make assumptions based on a single locale and
whose source code simplies the creation of different language
editions of a program (Kano, 1995). In other words,
internationalisation is the process of creating a base design that
can be easily adapted for various international markets (Fernandes,
1995). A properly internationalised product, which extracts all
cultural context, can deal with multiple languages and cultural
conventions (Luong et al., 1995; ODonnell, 1994; Taylor, 1992).
Internationalised software products are easier to manage and expand
to new markets for different countries. Furthermore, they can
minimise time delay in reaching users, lower cost and maintenance
in terms of bug xing and adding new features (Luong et al., 1995;
ODonnell, 1994). 1.1.2. Localisation Localisation is the process of
adapting a program for a specic international market, which
includes translating the user interface, resizing dialog boxes,
customising features (if necessary), and testing results to ensure
that the program still works (Kano, 1995). In other words,
localisation is the process of making a specic version of the
product for a target market. A properly localised product allows
users to concentrate on exploiting the software in their own
language and appropriate cultural context (Uren et al., 1993).
Localised software is not only easy to understand and meet
customers needs but also has
824
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
no impact on the original development team and minimal system
performance degradation compared with internationalised software
(ODonnell, 1994). 1.1.3. Glocalisation An emergent form of the
relationship between globalisation and localisation can be
synthesised into the term glocalisation. In some instances,
countries or cultures have become eclectic in a sense, by adopting
specic elements from other cultures without losing their own
identity. This has led to the emergence of phenomena such as world
music, gourmet cooking and ethnic body adornment. Glocalisation
involves the processes of acculturation and enculturation and could
encourage global availability while ensuring localised quality.
Acculturation may involve cultural modication by adapting to or
borrowing traits from another culture. Enculturation is the process
by which an individual learns the traditional content of a culture
and assimilates its practices and values. Some researchers have
likened this to a lifestyle adoption process. The concept of
glocalisation was dened by Thomas Friedman (2000) in his book The
Lexus and the Olive Tree as the ability of a culture, when it
encounters other strong cultures, to absorb inuences that naturally
t into and can enrich that culture, to resist those things that are
truly alien and to compartmentalise those things that, while
different, can nevertheless be enjoyed and celebrated as different
(Friedman, 2000). 1.1.4. Iconisation With visually oriented global
communications, there has been a tendency to swap the verbal for
the visual by the rapid increase of the use of icons. This has
happened in different many elds from corporate branding to
information design and corporate brands have frequently shed their
names in favour of representation by icons. In 1996, Nike dropped
its name, which was followed by other companies such as Pepsi,
Renault, Shell and BP, amongst others. These corporate brands have
turned into consumer icons. On the other hand, icons have
increasingly been used for the communication of information or
instructions on labels, packaging, in manuals and user interfaces.
Many such icons have become standardised and carry a silent
authority that is rarely questioned (Evamy, 2003). Interestingly, a
new phenomenon has appeared whereby established global icons have
been adopted and some have been localised or glocalised to meet
local requirements or reect and represent local traditions and
values. For instance, in India the standard ISO-type man has been
adapted to one in traditional Indian dress with a white turban and
a sarong (see Fig. 1). 1.1.5. Culturalisation1 In a reaction to
globalisation, an opposite trend is emerging, which promotes local
identity and highlights cultural values and traditions. The global
process of homogenisation may provoke people to be more aware of
their national and cultural identities (Fernandes, 1995).
Globalisation has sparked off a new awareness of localNote: Not to
be confused with Bourges-Waldegg & Scriveners (1998) term
Culturalisation that referred to the internationaliselocalise
process. They argued that culturalisation were inappropriate for
the design of interfaces intended to be shared by culturally
diverse users (Bourges-Waldegg and Scrivener, 1998)1
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
825
Fig. 1. Male toilet symbols from the US and India.
identity and there is a growing reluctance to give up the
cultural cocoon for a piece of the electronic revolution. In the
book, The Solid Side (a publication by Philips 1995) Ezio Manzini
argues that (Manzini and Susani): When society and individuals are
increasingly realising what it means to live in a limited and
interconnected world, what is emerging is not a unied global
society but an exasperated search for identity, both individual and
collective. This search for identity also includes claiming the
right to maintain different values. In effect, through a constant
ow of global inuences, retro styles are being celebrated, as many
cultures today seem to be in search of their own identity and
authenticity. Within the area of user-interface design, this
concept would come down to the development of a product from within
a cultural context, instead of the global product adapted for a
target culture. 1.2. Approaches to cultural issues in UI design As
part of this research, the cultural issues associated with
user-interface design were identied by a wide-ranging literature
survey and analysed by various usability assessment methods. Beyond
usability and accessibility there are signs that a third discipline
is emerging. The term culturability has been suggested by Barber
and Badre (1998) by combining the words culture and usability. They
developed a systematic usability method by inspecting hundreds of
Web sites to identify specic culture and genre design elements by
using cultural markers such as religion, language, customs, colour,
metaphors, icons and ags to facilitate user performance (Barber and
Badre, 1998).
826
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Another proposal by Bourges-Waldegg and Scrivener (1998)
illustrated a method of meaning in mediated action (MMA) that aims
to tackle culturally determined usability problems. The MMA
approach focuses on the understanding of representations, the
meanings of which are rooted in culturally specic contexts was an
iterative evaluation process of Representation Rs, Meaning M in
Context C that deals with multilingualism and other forms of
cultural heterogeneity (Bourges-Waldegg and Scrivener, 1998). Yeo
(1996) also proposed a strategy to solve usability problems by
localising the software through a Cultural User Interface (CUI) for
each of the target cultures. The CUI that aims to take advantage of
the shared or common knowledge of a target culture that could be
dened by country boundaries, language, cultural conventions, race,
shared activities or workplace was developed collaboratively with
the group of experts of the target culture, and evaluated and
modied through usability tests to ensure satisfaction (Yeo, 1996).
Evers and Day (1997) used a modied technology acceptance model to
examine users culturally specic design preferences with regard to
globally marketed software through questionnaires. They discovered
differences between Chinese and Indonesian students and found that
interface acceptance corresponds with the users cultural
background. The Chinese regarded the usefulness of the system as
being more important than ease of use, compared with the
Indonesians. The different attitudes and behaviours of both sets of
subjects could be explained from the view of anthropology such as
Hofstedes cultural dimensions (Evers and Day, 1997). There seems to
be a gap between notions of technology and culture, and a lack of
appropriate and valid approaches to their synchronisation. More
positively, researchers have been encouraged recently to establish
more empirical and practised-based studies within the eld of
culture and usability. It is likely that a deeper understanding of
culture, human cognition and perception followed by the evolution
of technology, may help to bridge the gap.
2. The need for effective (culture-centred) interface metaphors
According to Johnson (1997), for the digital revolution to take
place, a computer must also represent itself to the user, in a
language that the user understands (Johnson, 1997). This statement
points out the main question of how to minimise the
misunderstanding of visual representations and support metaphorical
reasoning in cognition. The role of metaphors in user-interface
design is the key. Metaphors are culturally biased and may serve as
a powerful communication tool, but only if implemented properly.
Making good user-interface design should acknowledge the value of
culture and take into account the intrinsic needs and preferences
of the user (Evers, 2002). To make an effective cultural leap, one
has to employ a good interface metaphor. Successful interface
metaphors should be developed or adapted through cultural
requirements by, or with reference to, representatives of the
culture for which they are intended. Many gurus such as Donald
Norman have claimed that our technology has reached a point of
saturation, and to accommodate a wide range of users has proved to
be crucial, yet not easy to achieve. Nelson (1990) in The Right Way
to Think About Software Design considered the main problem of the
metaphor was that slavish adherence to the
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
827
predominant metaphor, which prevents the emergence of things
that are genuinely new (Nelson, 1990). Rather than emphasising
updated technological functionality and aesthetic enhancement,
designers should therefore re-aim their focus and recognise the
interrelationship between culture and interface metaphor. Marzano
(1995) once suggested products that are relevant to specic needs
should be given cultural signicance and value for the user, meeting
the users need to express his or her personal identity as part of
the quality of their life as an individual. He further pointed out
that products should not only have form and function, but also have
content that is meaningful for the user (Manzini and Susani). To
achieve this level requires understanding of how to make interfaces
that have more cultural compatibility. In short, a good user
interface is dependent on an effective metaphor that echoes the
users conceptual model and enhances human computer interactions.
The desktop metaphor has proved successful during the past three
decades, in particular, by helping users adapt to early computer
systems. However, this one-for-all metaphor can no longer
sufciently support the modern environment of multiplying multimedia
platforms. Several problems associated with the desktop metaphor
have been identied (e.g. arbitrary criteria between visual
representations and real-world objects, and a lack of conveyance of
cultural identity and expression), and there have been numerous
attempts (e.g. Inxights Star Tree and Mirror Worlds Technologys
Scopeware), mostly research based, to nd alternatives to replace
it. Nevertheless, the results have not been signicant in terms of
successful market penetration. Perhaps, incorporating the idea of
Funology2 from computer games into the design of operating systems
and browsers is worth exploring. Lessons should be learnt from the
commercial success of computer games, that realistic simulation and
fun are the key components, which can release the power of the
metaphor. To investigate the applicability of the CCD system to the
design process, we have evaluated CCD by testing a new metaphor on
a specic target group. A substituted metaphor should not only be
able to create a sense of fun and relaxation, but also represent
cultural identity and values. A successful metaphor should also
meet the listed criteria (see Table 1). Based on the weighted
matrix method, a selection of possible metaphors was evaluated and
is presented in Table 2. Apart from the home metaphor and other
previous metaphors (e.g. data mountains, theatres, campus, painters
palettes and diary), the possible alternative metaphors that we
came up with were: art gallery, restaurant, castle and garden. All
of these are open spaces for the public to use. The interface
should be private and personal. Practically speaking, it has to
deal with the operating systems that are capable of managing data
and other functions such as Internet communication and home
entertainment. The results in Table 2 illustrate that the garden
metaphor has great potential to t these requirements.
The phrase Funology which has been recently coined (Blythe et
al., 2003) seems to be the latest buzzword in a long line of
catchphrases. However, the idea of taking lessons from computer
games is not new and dates back to the beginnings of interface
design - Malone (1982).
2
828
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Table 1 Metaphor selection criteria Richness Suitability Fun and
interesting (alluring) Originality Adaptability and transferability
A metaphor needs to provide a rich source of symbolism, language,
meaning, values, morphology and historic and cultural references. A
metaphor needs to translate effectively and to address every
functionality and accommodate possible future expansion. A metaphor
should be comprehensible and pleasurable. A metaphor should not
distract or annoy users, but rather be fun, entertaining and
interesting. A metaphor may lead to an entirely novel way in which
technology is applied and represented and inuence user behaviour
and interaction. A metaphor should be exible enough to be adapted
and applied to various situations and circumstances. A metaphor
should be able to be extended to other functional contexts and
perhaps even across cultural contexts.
2.1. Culture-centred design (CCD) The authors hereby introduce a
new culturally oriented system, namely, CultureCentred Design,
whose development was based on existing literature and research by
Marcus, Rose and others, who refer to cross-cultural interface
design (Aykin, 2005). In order, to exploit Culture-Centred Design
to its full potential, the design process should be concentrated
around the target user and his/her specic cultural conditions.
Therefore, the design process needs to be characterised by
iterative analyses. These analyses checked design choices in each
phase in the design process on cultural appropriateness, relevance,
semiotics, functionality and usability. A wide range of literature
references such as Nielsens (1993) Usability Engineering Lifecycle
Model, Apple computers (1992a) Human Computer Interface Guidelines,
the International Standard Organization (ISO) and the World Wide
Web Consortium (W3C) guidelines have provided suggestions for
software design and development processes. In general, they did not
clarify all potential culturalspecic end-user issues, but rather
further dened and addressed how interfaces should look and feel and
how users would expect to interact with them. Good interface design
should not only consider the need of the user and the task he/she
accomplishes, but also acknowledge the value of the users cultural
context to enhance the comprehensibility and transparency of the
interface. Therefore, CCD offered a complementary rather than
anTable 2 Weighted matrix evaluation of alternative original
metaphors Metaphor Criteria Cultural richness (0.25) Art Gallery
Restaurant Castle Garden Total score (10) 2 2.5 2.5 3 Suitability
for tasks (0.22) 3 2 2 3 Fun and interesting (0.22) 2 3 2 3
Originality (0.16) Transferability/adaptability (0.15) 1.5 2.5 3 3
Total score (1.00)
2.5 2.5 1.5 3.5
2.225 2.500 2.195 3.080
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
829
opposing view to existing design methodologies, e.g. Gourds
(1995) four design phases, and Lewis and Riemans (1993)
task-centered design process (Baecker, 1995). Furthermore, CCD
could be seen as a holistic approach to design. The selected
approach was based on Hix and Hartsons (1993) Star Life Cycle (Hix
and Hartson, 1993). The reason for this choice was that iteration
and evaluation are encouraged at every level or stage, since it
places evaluation at the center of its methodology. This was not
the case, with the linear, sequential, spiral and other approaches
that have been evaluated. The main research ndings are built upon a
practice-based project, i.e. the design of a computer operating
system and browser for Chinese users. The system led to a process
through which it was applied to the design project. The experiences
drawn from the development and tests of the design contributed to
the renement of the CCD system. The CCD system needed to address a
series of issues including the conveyance of cultural identity,
language, visual communication, and research on target user group
related to cognition and usability (see Fig. 2). A users perception
and behaviour is greatly inuenced by previous experience and
background, both social and cultural. There needs to be a greater
understanding of differences of cultural perspective in order to
make Culture-Centred Design work. The idea of a cultural lter was
derived from the book Psychoanalysis and Zen Buddhism by Erich
Fromm (German philosopher 19001980) (Fromm, 1960). The CCD model
consists of two parallel planes projecting towards an interface
(see Fig. 3). In comparison, user-centred design is based on an
average user and supplies translations according to nationality.
The one-for-all concept makes systems compatible
Fig. 2. The simplied Culture-Centred Design process.
830
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Fig. 3. Graphical representation of the Cultural Filter.
by standardisation but it also has a homogenous effect on
multi-cultural society by suppressing all cultural expression and
ignoring its social context. Within this uniformity, User-Centred
Design offers individualisation through customisation in a new
quest for identity that may lead to social isolation or the
formation of afnity groups. The CCD cultural lter consists of: 1.
The designers lter. The upper lter plane represents the designer,
who approaches the design of the interface on the basis of personal
experience, knowledge and ideas derived from a particular
socio-cultural background. All this is projected onto the interface
design through the designers own cultural lter. Whether they share
the same cultural origin or are foreign to that culture, the
designer is required to be sensitive to the users culture and to be
able to view it through the users cultural lter plane. On the rst
level of the lter, the role of the designer is to select the target
group, collect relevant cultural data, and check the available
technical requirements such as usability and evaluation tools. On
the second level of the lter, it is necessary for the designer to
create a fact book (e.g. CIA Yearbook of country information) or
visual collage (e.g. a set of
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
831
culturally distinctive images that could be obtained from
electronic sources) of their target culture including language,
logical thinking patterns and social taboo issues, for building up
an appropriate interface for the target users. A similar process
has been used successfully by the design consultancy IDEO for a
number of years via their so-called 51 method cardse product (IDEO,
2003; Mackay, 2004). 2. The end users lter. Similarly, the lower
plane represents end users who would observe the product interface
through their own cultural lter. On the rst level of the lter, the
users understand an interface through a cultural lter.
Theoretically, it is possible that elements within the design of an
interface would be noticed by users of one culture and remain
unnoticed by users of another, because of different forms of
awareness and perceptions. The interface designer needs to be aware
that the potential user might not share the same background
regarding language, logic and taboos. The decisions the designer
makes may feel natural and logical within his/her own context, but
might not to a target culture. The ideal interface is able to
exemplify the total user experience, and represents cultural values
and identities. The closer the similarity in socio-cultural
background between the user and the designer, the stronger the
assurance of a successful human-computer interaction. The CCD
cultural lter should not to be seen as a tool, but as a reective
mental map between the designers perception and the end users
perception. This is in stark contrast to the conventional design
approach for global products, which applies one cultural lter for
all. By respecting and understanding the users cultural lter, a
designer could improve the usability and help convey cultural
identity. Usability might be further improved by applying local
metaphors and representations. 2.2. The redesign of a computer
interface for a Chinese user group The point of a design test case
was to check the practicality of the application of the CCD system
within the process of design. Another motive was to nd out whether
CCD could lead to improvements in the usability of a product and to
see whether the design was able to convey cultural identity. The
main motives for choosing a computer interface for the design test
case were: It provided a chance to project and explore an
overarching metaphor to its full potential, applied to its layout
and applications. A computer interface is ideal for testing
usability. It would be interesting to see whether a digital product
could convey cultural identity. The redesign of a computer
interface for a Chinese user target group meant a rethink of the
desktop metaphor, which had been developed back in the 1960s and is
now widely adopted. Somehow the desktop interface has not really
evolved since its initial adoption and one its main shortcomings is
the limited means allowed to organise data on the desktop. The aim
of designing a Web browser as part of this research was not to
provide a total solution, but to explore a cohesive alternative to
the desktop metaphor, i.e. the garden as an overarching
metaphor.
832
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Fig. 4. Chinese garden icons derived from the cultural lter.
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
833
Motives for choosing the garden as the overarching metaphor
included: The fact that the Chinese view the traditional garden as
a reection of the world around them. The garden and the computer
could be used as a medium for relaxation and entertainment,
inspiration and creation, knowledge and information, communication
and socialising. Both the desktop and garden metaphors require
spatial management and maintenance. The digital format has many
similarities with organic cycles, with elements that grow, reduce,
reproduce, die off, recycle, remain, move and relate. The garden
metaphor applied opposites like natural versus articial and organic
versus geometric that can be relevant to different types of
computing. A garden is often considered to be the doorway to a
culture, so that garden design could offer insight into cultural
specic design principles such as layout, styles, and aesthetics.
The concept of a garden was highly transferable and adaptable to
other cultural contexts, as the garden is present in some form or
other in most cultures and periods. A demonstration of the
interface was developed in HTML so it could be reviewed on the web.
The demonstration showed the basic concept of the garden OS
interface with an example of a le browser and a web browser. It was
hoped the HTML-based demo would represent the look and feel of the
OS interface behaviour well enough. Using the cultural lter
approach, certain iconic symbols representative of the Chinese
culture were elicited (see Fig. 4). The ones most highly ranked by
the user groups were then incorporated into the nal version of the
OS. Firstly, it must be stated that it is unrealistic to believe
that the Chinese garden metaphor will revolutionise the way the
world uses computers, however, it is a signicant step in the right
direction, which will hopefully prove its usefulness over time. The
results to date are not conclusive, but do point to strong benets
and user acceptance. In terms of the recognition of new icons for
the web design, one should not be dissuaded by low rates of
cognition, as any design of interface will require a certain
learning curve from the user. Microsoft has had 25 years of
development experience with its windows interface. The need to
learn a new system or software package is not in itself a bad
thing. The younger generation have grown up in an on-line world and
many people relish the challenge of learning new software games and
aspire to become experts. The choice of the weighted matrix method
(see Table 3) is inevitably subjective. However, the criteria and
weightings were carefully chosen to reect a fair and equitable set
of important characteristics, by which the two alternatives can be
judged. In the nal analysis, the Garden metaphor has emerged as the
most appropriate choice and we therefore believe that it has the
potential to contribute signicantly to the next generation of
cultural interface designs. 2.3. Design process Several stages were
planned for the design process including: Dening and researching
the user target group. The target group is Chinese users from
834
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Table 3 Comparison between the desktop and garden metaphors
Metaphor Criteria Cultural richness (0.25) Desktop Garden Total
Score (10) 3 7 Effectiveness (0.25) 6 4 Fun and interesting (0.1) 4
6 Efciency (0.2) 7 3 Transferability/expandability (0.2) 4 6 Total
Score (1.00) 4.85 5.15
ages 1840 in the rst instance (the largest group of Chinese
internet users (38%) are between 1824 years old (CNNIC, 2005).
Indicative design (giving direction to design which is not visible
or obvious). At the initial stage it was decided to apply an
indicative design method in order to avoid the over-inuence of
trends, stylistic issues and any association by use of colour and
features. At this early stage the designs are typically
diagrammatic, pure and visually devoid of any deliberate cultural
reference. Nevertheless, this is not to say that the design is not
culturally rooted. Demonstration. The designs were translated into
working demonstration and it was decided to use HTML to make the
demonstration accessible online and to mimic to some extend the
look and feel of a real interface. Heuristic evaluation (ideal user
number is between 3 and 5) (Nielsen, 1994). Every stage or part in
the development of the design was checked through heuristic
evaluation following Nielsens principles (it is accepted that no
current heuristic method is culturally sensitive). The results and
conclusions from the evaluations were used in the redesign of parts
of the design. User evaluation. User evaluation is one of the most
common evaluation methods in use today. It measures whether a
developed system prototype meets the users expectations and needs.
It involves users carrying out experimental tasks to identify the
problems within a primitive system. In comparison with other
evaluation techniques, a combination of heuristic evaluation and
empiric user evaluation is stated to be the best (Baecker, 1995).
Design implementation. At the nal stage after the adjustments have
been carried out, the total design was accessed and the visual
elements were ne-tuned to the target culture. 2.4. Goals and
requirements The goals were set to improve the design of the garden
beyond the limitations of the desktop interface:
Customisation/personalisation. This may translate to a simple
change of colour or look of the garden or its elements. Another
idea was to develop a range of garden types, which could be offered
as themes with their own set of layouts, metaphors and visuals such
as Chinese, Japanese, French, English, Spanish and Indian gardens.
Improved organisational structure. An improved organisational
structure had been achieved through the design of an interface that
had been divided up into a series of specialised spaces. These
spaces allow for a more intuitive organisation of data storage.
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
835
Also the le browser has been designed for a better overview of
data storage to help improve localising les better. Improved
overall usability. It is believed that the metaphor will be
benecial to the usability in that it conveys a certain familiarity
because it is culturally rooted and therefore makes the interface
more intuitive. Conveyance of cultural identity. While the garden
metaphor incorporates tradition and ritual, its visualisation ought
to reect cultural heritage.
3. The garden OS interface Points of departure. The Chinese
garden was a microcosm of society, just as the Empirical garden
came to represent the state or well being of China, with ordinary
citizens making donations to these parks to strengthen China. In
this respect, a personal computer with a garden interface may reect
or inuence its users or owners world. A garden requires
maintenance, organisation, management and devotion. In some
cultures, rugs were crafted as interfaces representing gardens,
conveying information. Indicative design. A demonstration of the
interface was required to be developed based on an indicative
design. The demonstration was developed in HTML so that it could be
reviewed on the web and showed the basic concept of the garden OS
interface, with an example of a le browser and a web browser. It
was hoped the HTML-based demonstration would represent the look,
feel and behaviour of the OS interface. Customisation. The garden
interface needed to allow rearrangement and redesign from a default
position by drag and drop actions. The new layout needed to be
saved as a preference setting, so that it would be retrieved when
the computer was started up again. Another option might be the
theme of the garden. Although the Chinese traditional garden was
the point of departure for this CCD case, it would be interesting
to see whether the garden concept could be translated to the
gardens of other cultures. After all, the garden probably has been
and still is a universal concept. This would mean that the user
would be offered a series of gardens to choose from, much like the
themes offered by Windows or Mac OS. The garden themes might
include a Spanish/Moorish garden, a French/Italian renaissance
garden, a Japanese Zen garden, and an English maze garden. Although
each of these gardens has a similar functionality, they are all
very individualistic enterprises (see Fig. 5). A typical Chinese
pleasure garden plan was chosen to serve as a point of departure
for the layout for the interface. Functionality. The interface
layout relies on a division into territories, mirroring the concept
of the traditional Chinese garden. Each territory is a specialised
area and has a specic function that has to make sense in the
computer environment. Several suitable territories had been
identied and mapped to computer functions (see Table 4). 3.1. Test
methods There were two major aims when testing the usability of the
Web-based operating system based on the Chinese garden metaphor.
The rst was to collect valuable feedback
836
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Fig. 5. Different garden styles from around the world
(English:Maze, French:Renaissance, Arabic:Moorish and
Japanese:Zen).
to improve the usability of the interface. The second was to
measure the effectiveness of the selected evaluation methods. In
the user evaluation, Chinese participants who had good computer and
Internet skills and experience were recruited from amongst
postgraduate students at goldsmiths college. The chosen evaluation
methods for this research were heuristic evaluation and user
evaluation. The heuristic evaluation was intended to collect
subjective feedback, whilst user evaluation was aimed at gathering
objective feedback. The testing of the interface was divided into
two parts. Heuristic evaluation concentrated on details within the
interface and pinpointed cognitive problems at the design stage.
User evaluation accessed the interactivity of the interface and the
success of the metaphor on the basis of a working demonstration.
The initial evaluation was conducted with three Taiwanese students
using the think aloud protocol, observation and questionnaire
survey (see Table 5). Data collection techniques included taking
notes, screen capture software and video recording. The heuristic
evaluation was applied throughout the design stage and involved
details which included (see Fig. 6): The testing of icons for both
browser and OS. This tested the cognition of each representation
that corresponds to its function; The testing of layout for both
browser and OS; Testing other issues that are inuenced by colour,
size, proportion, position, etc.; Testing of the metaphor, and
Testing the interactivity.
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006) 820852
Table 4 Functionality of the garden layout Territories 1. Atrium
Usage of the traditional Chinese garden A focal point in the centre
of the garden. Usually a rock or a building (such as pavilion and
chapel) serves as an eye catcher, which can be viewed from all
other points of the garden. Sometimes it was used as a pond for
relaxation and creation. For exhibition and display
837
Implementation of interface functions Relaxation/creativity. For
practicing arts e.g. panting, calligraphy and poetry. Perhaps for
inspiration e.g. meditative screensaver with the interactive sound
of water.
2. Gallery
3. Hall or Courtyard 4. Home
For storing a tool shed/garden shed. Usually situated on one
side of the garden. The Chinese considered the house to be part of
the garden by blurring the concept of outside/inside. A place where
decisions are made. A teahouse for social events and entertainment,
e.g. ball courts and music concerts. For reading and private
collection. A greenhouse with owerpots like bonsai. Self-learning
and organisation.
Display/show case. Data to be published like a portfolio,
homepage, Web-log, and photo albums. Maintenance. For garden tools,
compost heap and re. Management. For preferences, settings such as
seasonal and time changes, agenda, calculator, the system folder
and Hard Drive.
5. Leisure
6. Library 7. Nursery 8. Study
Entertainment. For MP3 music, Real player, Quick Time
applications, DVD, games and movies. Storage of data.
Recent/on-going projects. Data les which are recent or in progress,
shortcuts, links, etc. Administration/information. For Internet
access and Ofce applications.
After the outcomes of the heuristic evaluation were collected
and analysed, the design was reassessed and improved. This mainly
consisted of improving the usability and conspicuity of icons and
user areas of the Garden which the evaluators had found to difcult
to recognise intuitvely. A further study with six Taiwanese
students, which included the three original evaluators (see Table
6) consisted of a task instruction form (to visit the redesigned
website/OS), iconic survey and three-part questionnaire (16
questions). 3.2. Heuristic results and discussion The initial
ndings of the two evaluation protocols point to a positive feedback
from all pilot users. The two phases of interaction testing,
although small in scale, gave the researcher a great deal of
insight into the usability of the CCD approach in a real world
situation. The evaluators satisfaction is presented in Table 5
based on the Likert scale (1, strongly disagree; 2, disagree; 3,
neutral; 4, agree; 5, strongly agree). The results show that the
evaluators were satised with the system and interface; although
improvements in the visual representations and the overall design
would be welcomed. The results of Questions 1 and 4 although
marginally neutral, showed that the garden visual icons and layout
needed to be improved, in terms of iconic suitability and
consistency. Question 3 reected two different aesthetic views due
to its high SD.
838
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Table 5 General satisfaction results of Evaluation 1
Questions/evaluator number 1. The concept of gardening is familiar
to the user and information display is in a natural and logical
order. 2. The visual icons and layout t appropriately to the
Chinese gardening cultural context and allow users to customise
frequent actions and speed up the interaction. 3. The visual icons
and layout contain relevant information and the overall design is
visually pleasant. 4. Design elements such as icons and interactive
actions indicate the same meaning across the whole platform. 5. The
visual icons, actions and options are visible and the user doesnt
need to remember information from one part of the dialogue to
another. 6. The overall design based on the garden metaphor offers
an enhancement to the desktop metaphor in cultural signicance. Mean
1 3 2 3 3 4 Mean 3.33 SD 0.47
4
4
4
4.0
0.00
2
4
3
3.0
0.82
3
3
4
3.33
0.47
4
4
4
4.0
0.00
5
4
4
4.33
0.47
3.5
3.67
3.83
Question 6 showed that the three evaluators agreed that the
overall design and concept was innovative and user-friendly. They
showed great interest in the development of the Web-based operating
system based on the Chinese garden metaphor because they wanted to
try something different from the desktop metaphor. Their
satisfaction was also shown in their responses to other questions,
e.g. the favourite elements were re, a frog, compost, les, a
Chinese guitar and plants. The home icon was the least favourite
element and was thought to be confusing because it did not look
like a Chinese style icon. They also suggested adding more visual
objects and options, and the deployment of appropriate sizes
throughout the design of all elements, such as plant icons that
should not be bigger than home icons. Based on Evaluation 1, the
researcher redesigned the interface to support more iconic
communication. The interface that functioned as a gateway provided
access to a wide range of tools for communication, information
management and entertainment. Evaluation 2 aimed to strengthen the
goals of Evaluation 1 and support the whole CCD design process. It
focused on the evaluation of the redesigned interface and the
evaluation of icons in the operating system, the le and Web
browsers. In general, all six evaluators could clearly identify the
interface as the Chinese garden and were largely satised with its
visualisation. Table 6 relates to the evaluators satisfaction with
the interface layout. Questions 1 and 8 are associated with the
visibility of the garden interface. Most of the evaluators agreed
that the interface could be easily identied as a Chinese garden,
and the horizontal view might help orientation. Responses to
Questions 2 and 3 indicated that most of the evaluators had
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
839
Fig. 6. The Chinese garden screen layout with sectors
marked.
no preference on a notebook computer interface based on the
garden metaphor, but they thought the garden metaphor had the
potential to be used for business applications. Question 4 showed
how many of the eight sectors had been identied by the evaluators.
However, the layout that consists of eight sectors whereby each one
represents a specic function had proved to be difcult to use (19%
recognition). It was anticipated that the evaluators would at least
be able to recognise ve sectors, i.e. Leisure, Maintenance,
Relaxation/creativity, Administration/information, and
Recent/on-going projects, through their visual icons, this clearly
was not the case. It is speculated that the ones that were identied
could have resulted from their position and/or size of the sectors.
This area obviously requires further development in terms of the
layout and recognition of the icon used. In Question 5, most of the
evaluators agreed that the division of the garden into different
spaces helps the user organise data on the screen better than with
the conventional desktop. Responses to Questions 6 and 7 reected
how desirable it is to have a choice of garden themes from
different cultures, and have variation in seasonal, day or night,
or weather changes on the screen. Table 7 shows the evaluators
satisfaction with the OS and le browser. Responses to Question 1
indicated that most evaluators agreed with the interpretation of
the re and compost heap icons for deleting and disposing/retrieval
of data. In Question 2, four evaluators agreed that the poem and
calligraphy icons could represent regularly based applications. The
results of Questions 3 and 4 showed that evaluators had no
preference
840
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Table 6 Evaluators satisfaction results of interface layout in
Evaluation 2 Questions/evaluator number 1. The Chinese garden
metaphor can clearly be identied by the way the interface is
visualised. 2. This interface, based on the garden metaphor, is
more suitable for a notebook computer. 3. The garden interface
concept is also suitable for business applications. 4. The layout
is made up of eight sectors. Could you identify the functionality
of each sector? (Score represents the number of sectors identied)
5. The division of the garden into spaces helps the user organise
data on the computer better than with the conventional desktop. 6.
Besides the Chinese garden layout it would be desirable to have a
choice of garden themes from other cultures. 7. An option to have
seasonal, day/night, or weather changes would be desirable. 8. The
horizontal view (by clicking the rock) is useful because it helps
in the orientation. Mean 1 4 2 4 3 4 4 4 5 2 6 4 Mean 3.67 SD
0.75
3
3
3
3
3
2
2.83
0.37
4
3
4
4
2
4
3.50
0.76
3
1
1
2
0
2
1.50
0.96
3
2
4
4
4
4
3.50
0.76
3
4
4
4
4
2
3.50
0.76
5
4
4
4
4
5
4.33
0.47
5
4
4
4
3
2
3.67
0.94
3.75
3.13
3.50
3.63
2.75
3.13
as to whether the garden building icons should be movable, but
they thought that their appearance is sufciently identiable as a
Chinese roof. Question 5 showed that three evaluators agreed that
the rock icons should not be xed, but moveable, however we note the
high SD in this data (1.11), which highlights the level of
disagreement between the evaluators. Questions 6, 7 and 8 were
related to visual representations of pots, plants, seeds, and
leafs. Most of the evaluators agreed that sets of plants that are
stored inside the garden building of the le browser could be
logically matched to the hierarchical relationship of folders, les
and documents. The concepts of the compost heap and re icons were
very easily recognised. The nal questions from Evaluation 2 asked
the six users which icons they thought were best suited for the
following web browser functions: Forward; Home; Refresh; Search;
Favourite; Stop and Browse (see Fig. 4). Each evaluator was asked
to make a choice out of three possible icons. The most popular
icons are shown within the web browser window (see Fig. 7).
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006) 820852
Table 7 Evaluators satisfaction results of OS and File Browser
Icons in Evaluation 2 Questions/evaluator number 1. Besides having
a re icon for deleting data, the compost heap is useful for
disposing of data but with the possibility of retrieval. 2. The
poem and calligraphy icons represent useful applications that would
be used regularly. 3. The icons for the garden buildings should be
movable and not xed. 4. The garden buildings icons are sufciently
recognisable as Chinese roofs. 5. The rock icons should be movable
and not xed. 6. A plant/pot icon in a garden sector clearly
represents a shortcut/link to a project. 7. The pots, plants,
roots, seeds and leafs are logical representational equivalents for
folders, les and documents (the tree view in the le browser). 8. It
is logical that projects (plant icons) are stored inside the garden
buildings (the le browser). Mean 1 5 2 4 3 3 4 5 5 4 6 4 Mean 4.17
SD
841
0.69
3
3
4
5
4
4
3.83
0.69
2
3
3
4
4
2
3.00
0.82
2
4
4
5
4
4
3.83
0.90
5 2
3 3
4 4
4 3
2 2
2 2
3.33 2.67
1.11 0.75
4
4
4
4
4
4
4.00
0.00
4
4
4
4
2
4
3.67
0.75
3.38
3.50
3.75
4.25
3.25
3.25
3.3. User evaluation and analysis Objectives. The user
evaluation phase was set up to evaluate the success of the garden
metaphor and the overall user satisfaction of the interface
interaction with the intended target group. The test showed whether
the metaphor was strong enough to make the interface naturally
intuitive, and whether the visualisation had translated the
metaphor convincingly enough for efciency of use. A secondary
objective was to discover whether the garden metaphor was portable
to other target users from other cultures. Participants. Ideally
the participants in a usability study should represent the various
age groups and backgrounds of the target audience. The users in
this empirical study were therefore chosen to full this criterion.
To test the CCD process within cultural domains it was decided to
analyse three user groups, i.e. Chinese, Oriental (non-Chinese) and
International. For the experimental group, eight participants from
the Chinese target group, including Taiwanese, Mainland Chinese and
British Chinese, with ranging Internet and computer skills and
experience were asked to participate. For the oriental (nonChinese)
group, six participants including Japanese, Malaysian, Indonesian,
Thai and
842
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Fig. 7. The web browser interface showing the selected Chinese
icons.
South Korean were also invited to experience the interface and
check the transferability of the Chinese garden metaphor. For the
control group, a selection of 14 international participants from
different cultural backgrounds, i.e. British, Danish, Dutch, Greek,
Israeli, Indian, Uruguayan and Norwegian were invited to explore
the suitability of the garden metaphor to other cultures.
Procedures. The user evaluation in this study was conducted through
emails. All the participants received an email message and were
asked to evaluate the website online and reply by completing a
nine-item questionnaire and user background survey (see Appendix
Auser evaluation). Further to this, the researcher decided to
observe and record the actions concerning individual behaviour and
communication variables of selected members from each of the three
groups. Three Chinese, two oriental (non-Chinese) (one South Korean
and one Thai), and three International participants (2 British and
1 Greek) were therefore invited to the researchers ofce to explore
the interface. These sessions were recorded for reference, through
screen recording software and a digital video. The conclusions from
the user evaluation were analysed and the CCD theory and system was
adapted accordingly. Test environment and tools. The test was
carried out on the Interface of Evaluation 3 using the web address
http://www.velthuizen.be/testing. For the walk-in participants,
an
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
843
ofce environment was provided and the tools included a Macintosh
PowerPC G4 with the OS 10.1.5 version, a digital recorder, and
SnapzProX were used. 3.3.1. User evaluation results The overall
reaction to the user evaluation phase was remarkably positive,
considering the variety of cultural backgrounds of the three groups
of participants. 3.3.1.1. Chinese group (average age 27 yearsSD 5
years). In Table 8, the Chinese target participants background
information and the overall user satisfaction of the interface are
presented. The results show that all eight of them (four males and
four females) use a PC on a daily basis and most of them were
willing to interact with an interface/operating system that
comprised localised icons and symbols according to their cultural
background. In Question 1, most of them were satised with the look
and feel of the interface. Question 2 showed that the concept and
metaphor of the Chinese garden could be clearly distinguished
through its visual representations. Question 3 showed that half of
the participants agreed that the visibility of the visual
representations such as buildings, re, compost heap and plant pot
icons could be understood and recognised. Question 4 related to the
efciency of nding the Web and other browsers. Most of the
participants agreed that it is easy to locate them. In response to
Question 5, three of the participants agreed that the icons of the
Web browser could be easily associated with their functions. Due to
its high SD (1.05), this reected the different viewpoints amongst
the participants. Questions 6 and 7 showed that functionality of
the sectors of the interface could be identied by half of the
participants, and the division of the interface into eight sectors
was regarded as a useful method of data organisation and
orientation. In Question 8, most of the participants showed
positive agreement regarding using the Chinese garden interface, if
it was subsequently developed into marketable software. Question 9
acknowledged that the Chinese garden conveyed cultural signicance
(this question rated the highest average score of 4.38). 3.3.1.2.
Oriental (non-Chinese) group (average age 28 yearsSD 5 years). In
Table 9, the oriental (non-Chinese) participants background
information and their overall satisfaction are presented. All six
of them (four males and two females) use a PC daily and prefer to
interact with localised icons and symbols on an interface/operating
system in accordance with their cultural background. In response to
Questions 1 and 9, most of them kept neutral attitudes towards the
satisfaction of the overall design and improvement in cultural
identity. The result of Question 2 showed that most of them tended
to disagree that the concept and metaphor of the Chinese garden
could be sufciently distinguished through its visual
representations. Question 3 showed that the visual representations
were not easily recognised and understood. Its high SD of 1.21
reected diverse opinions among all the participants. Question 4
showed that most of them found that the Web browser, le browser and
the horizontal moon window were not easy to nd. The result of
Question 5 showed that the icons of the Web browser were confusing
and hard to associate with their functions. Questions 6 and 7
showed that functionality of the sectors of the interface could not
be identied, so that the eight sectors were not useful for data
organisation and orientation. In response to Question 8, most of
them kept neutral attitudes towards the use
844
Table 8 Chinese target participants Participant number
Background information Name Gender Age Nationality Education level
Frequency of use Type of computer Experience with non-desktop
metaphor Preference to interact with an localised interface/OS
Questions Q.1 Q.2 Q.3 Q.4 Q.5 Q.6 Q.7 Q.8 Q.9 Mean 1 SL M 38 ROC
PhD Daily PC No No 2 EC M 25 British Chinese BA Daily PC No Yes 3
YCH M 24 ROC MBA Daily PC Yes No 4 XL F 32 PRC MBA Daily PC No Yes
5 ZY F 25 PRC MA Daily PC No Yes 6 YZ F 25 PRC MA Daily PC Yes Yes
7 CC F 23 ROC MA Daily PC Yes Yes 8 YJH M 23 ROC BA Daily PC No No
Mean SD S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
26.88
4.99
4 4 4 4 5 5 3 4 5
4 3 3 2 3 4 3 4 4
4 5 3 5 2 2 4 4 4
3 5 4 5 3 3 2 3 5
4 4 3 4 4 3 5 5 4
4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
3 3 3 4 2 4 4 4 5
3 4 4 4 2 3 3 3 4
3.63 4.00 3.50 4.00 3.13 3.50 3.50 3.88 4.38 3.72
0.48 0.71 0.50 0.87 1.05 0.87 0.87 0.60 0.48
Table 9 Oriental/Non-Chinese participants Participant number
Background information Name Gender Age Nationality Education level
Frequency of use Type of computer Experience with non-desktop
metaphor Preference to interact with an localised interface/OS
Questions Q.1 Q.2 Q.3 Q.4 Q.5 Q.6 Q.7 Q.8 Q.9 Mean 1 KT M 23
Malaysian BSc Daily PC No No 2 HT M 22 Japanese BA Daily PC No No 3
AS M 35 Indonesian PhD candidate Daily PC No Yes 4 DL F 31
Indonesian PhD candidate Daily PC No Yes 5 CB M 31 Thai PhD
candidate Daily PC Yes Yes 6 SL F 26 South Korean MA Daily PC/Mac
Yes Yes Mean SD S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18
(2006) 820852
28
4.69
4 4 3 3 4 3 3 3 3
4 3 3 3 2 2 3 3 3
3 2 1 2 1 2 3 2 3
3 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 3
2 3 5 2 3 4 3 4 3
5 3 3 2 2 4 5 5 5
3.50 2.83 2.83 2.33 2.33 3.00 3.17 3.17 3.33 2.94
0.96 0.69 1.21 0.47 0.94 0.82 0.90 1.07 0.75
845
846
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
of further development of the Chinese garden interface. Note
that this question also had a high SD of 1.07. 3.3.1.3.
International group (average age 34 yearsSD 9 years). In Table 10,
the international participants background information and their
overall satisfaction are presented. The results showed that all 14
participants (11 males and three females) use computers (12 PCs and
2 Macs) daily, and most of them desire to interact with localised
icons and symbols on an interface/operating system according to
their cultural background. In response, to Questions 1 and 9, most
of them were satised with the overall design of the interface and
acknowledged that the Chinese garden represented cultural
signicance. Question 2 showed that the concept and metaphor of the
Chinese garden could be clearly identied through its visual
representations. However, its high SD of 1.16 reected diverse
opinions amongst the participants. Question 3 showed that the
visual representations could be understood and recognised. Question
4 showed that most of them agreed that the Web browser and other
browsers were not difcult to nd. Question 5 showed that half of
them agreed that the icons of the Web browser could be associated
with their functions. However, its high SD of 1.30 reected diverse
opinions amongst the participants. The result of Question 6 showed
that the functionality of the sectors of the interface could be
identied. Nevertheless, its high SD of 0.97 reected diverse views.
Question 7 showed that most of the participants believed that the
division of the eight sectors on the screen was useful for data
organisation and orientation. In response to Question 8, most of
them agreed that it was simple to explore the Chinese garden
interface and were willing to try this, when developed further.
3.3.2. Discussion In general, all of the 28 participants had high
levels of qualications, all users were degree holders, and some of
them had masters and/or PhD degrees. It is interesting to note that
all but three were PC users, one can only speculate as to whether
more Mac users would have had an effect on the results. This may
form the basis of a further study. Looking at the overall results
from Tables 810, it is signicant to note that both the Chinese
group (3.72) and the International group (3.72) have remarkably
similar average results. This contrasts with the oriental
(non-Chinese) group that has a markedly lower value of 2.94. The
reasons for this difference may result, in part, from the fact that
there were two Indonesian users in this small groupIndonesia with
its multitude of 300 tribal cultures is well known for its ethnic
diversity and hence different viewpoints (Taylor, 2004). In terms
of individual questions, clearly Question 5 elicited the most
negative overall average result (2.87) and the biggest SD (1.10),
followed by Questions 4, 6 and 7. This indicates areas that require
further development work. One of the international participants
pointed out the benets of privacy and protection that would derive
from having an interface, which few other users would be able to
understand. In conclusion, possible factors of inuence on the
results could be regional variations, more countries represented
and a higher age group of users.
Table 10 International participantsParticipant number 1 2 3 4 5
6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Mean SD
Background Information Name DC Gender M Age 41 Nationality
British Education Level Frequency of Use Type of Computer
Experience with nondesktop metaphor Preference to interact with a
localised interface/OS Questions Q.1 Q.2 Q.3 Q.4 Q.5 Q.6 Q.7 Q.8
Q.9 Mean BSc Daily PC Yes
BJ M 45 British PhD Cand. Daily PC No
JF M 23 British BA Daily PC Yes
NC M 27 Israeli PhD Cand. Daily PC No
MG M 34 Greek PhD Cand. Daily PC No
EK M 34 Dutch MA Daily PC Yes
JM M 29 Indian MA Daily PC No
AJ F 31 Danish PhD Cand. Daily PC No
CA F 28 Uruguay MA Daily PC No
DL M 25 Greek PhD Cand. Daily PC Yes
AS F 59 British GCE Daily MAC Yes
SP M 41 British PhD Daily PC Yes
OM M 33 Norway PhD Cand. Daily PC No
AM M 30 British MA Daily MAC Yes
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
34.29
9.18
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
4 4 4 4 2 2 3 3 4
4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
4 4 3 3 3 4 4 5 5
5 5 5 3 3 4 5 5 5
3 5 4 4 2 4 3 4 4
4 4 4 2 2 2 4 3 4
3 5 4 2 4 3 4 4 2
4.5 1 2.5 2.5 1 3.5 4.5 3.5 4.5
4 4 4 4 5 5 4 4 4
5 4 4 4 4 5 5 4 4
5 5 4 5 5 3 5 5 5
4 3 3 3 5 3 4 4 4
4 2 4 2 2 3 3 3 3
3 5 4 2 2 2 4 3 4
4.04 3.93 3.82 3.18 3.14 3.39 4.04 3.89 4.04 3.72
0.67 1.16 0.59 0.96 1.30 0.97 0.67 0.71 0.77
847
848
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
4. Conclusions and further implications This research project is
a rst attempt at formulating a theoretical basis for the adoption
of cultural factors into the design process. The importance of this
work is exemplied by the fact that China will become (in the not
too distant future) a dominant force, in both an economic and
literal sense. The desktop interface, which is based on an
AmericanEnglish metaphor, offers particular complexities for users
who come from different cultural backgrounds. The onefor-all
concept of user-centred design makes systems compatible by
standardisation, but it also has a homogenising effect on
multi-cultural society by suppressing cultural expression and often
ignoring social context. Despite much empirical research on
adaptability and usability in the cultural context, it is argued
that there is still a lack of appropriate methods to assist
interface designers in dealing with cultural issues (Aykin, 2005).
Another interesting socio-cultural phenomenon concerns a reaction
against the homogenisation of cultures and in favour of the
preservation of cultural diversity through a renewed awareness and
expression of cultural identity and a search for authenticity. A
culture rooted design approach is therefore believed to be the way
to allow cultural identity, meaning, values and tradition to be
truly integrated and conveyed. Through practice-based research
focussed on the design of a computer interface for a Chinese user
group, the basis for a Culture-Centred Design system evolved. In
particular the iterative process of heuristic evaluation was found
to be particularly appropriate to the design process. Background
knowledge of the user target group and its culture and
consideration of the cultural lter (language, logic and taboos) are
essential to the anticipation of user behaviour. The appropriate
choice of metaphor and its consistent use are believed to be the
keys to successful user-computer interaction. The resulting
interface was largely icon based, as research showed that Chinese
users have little problem in identifying and interpreting icons,
because their language is character based. The choice of the
Chinese traditional garden for the overarching metaphor proved
insightful and was sufciently accommodating to be translated to
computer related systems and processes. The on-line HTML
demonstration of the computer interface served as an indicative
design, but was perhaps too basic for user evaluation purposes, as
most details were not properly interactive. Prior knowledge and
familiarity of computer interfaces has undoubtedly inuenced or
affected the respondents experience of the interface design. The
garden metaphor, we believe, provides a direct link to the Chinese
socio-cultural context, and is a concept which has been, in our
opinion, remarkably under-utilised. This metaphor also has the
advantage of being additionally applicable to other cultural
contexts. The importance of the culture-rooted metaphor has been
acknowledged when considering current cultural trends (Bentley,
2004), but as yet there are very few ways of tackling the
culture-rooted usability problems that often occur in user
interaction. The identication of a suitable culture-rooted metaphor
lies at the basis of CCD. It should be noted that it is unrealistic
to believe that the Chinese garden metaphor will revolutionise the
way the world uses computers, however, it is a signicant step in
the right
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
849
direction, which will hopefully prove its usefulness over time.
The results to date are not conclusive, but do point to strong
benets and user acceptance. From the results, it is clear that the
mean values and standard deviations are susceptible to changes in
evaluators scores due to the small sample sizes and interpretation
of the questions. However, the overall results of this study have
shown very positive outcomes for the use of the CCD system and
Chinese garden metaphor. The next phase involves the full user
evaluation with a larger, culturally diverse population, including
novices and experienced users, students, academic staff, remote
users, and professional user interface designers. As stated by
Marcus (2003) The journey with China involved as a major
participant will be an exciting and rewarding adventure in the
future history of user-interface design(Marcus, 2003).
Appendix A. The user evaluation questionnaire A.1. Introduction
Welcome. Thank you in advance for your participation. This
evaluation is part of a practical design for my PhD thesis. My
topic is Culture-Centred Design and is focussed on computer
interface design. A clickable demonstration of the computer
interface is in the process of being developed applying an
alternative to the desktop metaphor. The design of the interface is
developed for a Chinese user group and incorporates Chinese
symbolism and morphology. Go to: www.velthuizen.be/testing Please
click the interface of Evaluation 3 and explore it. Can you nd the
le browser, the Web browser, and others? This evaluation is
basically to test and improve the look and feel of the interface
concept, layout, behaviour and design. Please try out as much as
possible and comment on things that you believe are not logical.
A.2. Usability Study Questionnaire Q1. Overall, I am satised with
the look and feel of the interface. Strongly disagree Disagree
Neutral Agree Strongly agree Q2. The concept and metaphor of the
Chinese garden is sufciently clear through its visual
representations (i.e. icons and layout). Strongly disagree Disagree
Neutral Agree Strongly agree Q3. The visual representations (such
as buildings, re, compost heap and plant/pot icons) provided in
this interface are easy to understand and recognise. Strongly
disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree Q4. It is easy to nd
the Web browser (by clicking the frog), the le browser (by clicking
the building icons) and the horizontal moon window (by clicking the
rocks).
850
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Strongly disagree
Disagree
Neutral
Agree
Strongly agree
Q5. The icons of the Web browser (such as Backward and Forward)
can easily be associated with their functions. Strongly disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree Q6. The purpose or
specialisation of each sector of the interface (such as Leisure,
Maintenance and Relaxation) can easily be identied. Strongly
disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree Q7. The division of
the interface into eight sectors is a useful feature for data
organisation and orientation. Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral
Agree Strongly agree Q8. It was simple to explore this interface
and I would like to use it if it is further developed into
software. Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree
Q9. The overall interface is visually pleasant and offers an
enhancement to the desktop metaphor in terms of cultural signicance
Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree A.3.
Background Information Name: Gender: Age: Nationality: Educational
level/Qualications: Frequency of using computers (e.g.
daily/weekly): Which type of computer do you use on a regular
basis: Have you had any experience with a non-desktop metaphor
interface? If yes, please describe: Would you prefer to interact
with an interface/Operating System that comprises localised icons
and symbols, which directly relates to your cultural background? Is
there anything else I should know about your interests or
background? If yes, please describe: THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME
ReferencesAykin, N. (Ed.), 2005. Usability and
Internationalization of Information Technology. Lawrence Erlbaum,
New York, p. 392. Baecker, R.M., 1995., Readings in Human-Computer
Interaction: Toward the Year 2000, vol xxi. second ed., Morgan
Kaufmann, San Francisco, CA, p. 950. Barber, W., Badre, A., 1998.
Culturability: the merging of culture and usability. In:
Proceedings of the fourth Human Factors and the Web Conference.
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
851
Bentley, P.J., 2004. Software seeds: the garden where perfect
software grows. In: New Scientist. Reed Business Information Ltd,
London, p. 2831. Blythe, M., Overbeeke, C., Monk, A.F., Wright,
P.C. (Eds.), 2003. Funology: from Usability to Enjoyment. Kluwer
Academic Publishers, Dordrecht. Bourges-Waldegg, P., Scrivener, S.,
1998. Meaning, the central issue in cross-cultural HCI design.
Shared values and shared interfaces: the role of culture in the
globalisation of human-computer systems. Interacting with
Computers: the interdisciplinary Journal of Human-Computer
Interaction 9(3), 287309. CNNIC, 2005. Statistical Survey Report on
the Internet Development of China. China Internet Network
Information Centre. Evamy, M., 2003. World without Words. Laurence
King, London. Evers, V., 2002. Cross-cultural applicability of user
evaluation methods: a case study amongst Japanese, north American,
English and Dutch users. In: Proceedings CHI 2002, Minneapolis.
Evers, V., Day, D., 1997. The role of culture in interface
acceptance. In: IFIP TC13 International Conference on HumanComputer
Interaction INTERACT97, Chapman & Hall, London, Sydney,
Australia. Fernandes, T., 1995. Global Interface Design. Academic
Press, London, p. 191. Friedman, T.L., 2000. In: 1st Anchor Books
(Ed.), The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding Globalization,
vol. xxii. Anchor Books, New York, p. 490. Fromm, E., 1960.
Psychoanalysis and Zen Buddhism. In: Fromm, E., Suzuki, D.T.
(Eds.), Zen Buddhism & Psychoanalysis. Harper, New York, pp.
77141. Gentner, D., Nielsen, J., 1996. The Anti-Mac Interface. ACM,
New York. Hix, D., Hartson, H.R., 1993. Developing user interfaces:
ensuring usability through product & process. Wiley
Professional Computing, vol. xxix. Wiley, New York p. 381. IDEO,
2003. IDEO Method Cards: 51 Ways to Inspire Design. W. Stout
Architectural Books, San Francisco, USA. Johnson, S., 1997.
Interface Culture: How New Technology Transforms the Way We Create
and Communicate. rst ed. HarperEdge, San Francisco, p. 264. Kano,
N., 1995. Developing international software for Windows 95 and
Windows NT. Microsoft Programming Series vol. xvi, Microsoft Press,
Redmond, Wash, p. 743. Luong, T.V., Lok, J.S.H., Taylor, D.J.,
Driscoll, K., 1995. Internationalization: Developing Software for
Global Markets, vol. vii. Wiley, New York, p. 293. Mackay, W.E.,
2004. The interactive thread: exploring methods for
multi-disciplinary design. In: Proceedings of the 2004 Conference
on Designing Interactive Systems: Processes, Practices, Methods,
and Techniques. ACM Press, Cambridge, MA, USA. Malone, T.W., 1982.
Heuristics for designing enjoyable user interfaces: lessons from
computer games. In: Proceedings of the 1982 Conference on Human
Factors in Computing Systems. Addison-Wesley, Washington, DC.
Manzini, E., Susani, M., (Eds.). The Solid Side. VCK Publishing,
Philips Corporate Design, p. 175. Marcus, A., 2001. International
and intercultural user interfaces. In: Stephanidis, C. (Ed.), User
Interfaces for All: Concepts, Methods, and Tools. Lawrence Erlbaum,
Mahwah, NJ, pp. 4763. Marcus, A., 2003. Fast Forward:
User-Interface Design and China: A Great Leap Forward. ACM, New
York. Marcus, A., 2005. Cross-cultural, global, and mobile
user-interface design. In: HCI International: 11th International
Conference on HumanComputer Interaction, Las Vegas, USA. Marzano,
S., 2000. New values for the new millennium. Philips Corporate
Design. McLuhan, M., 1994. In: 1st MIT Press (Ed.), Understanding
Media: the Extensions of Man, vol. xxiii. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA,
p. 365. McLuhan, M., Fiore, Q., 1967. The Medium is the Message.
Random House, New York, p. 157. Nelson, T.H., 1990. The right way
to think about software design. In: Laurel, B., Mountford, S.J.
(Eds.), The Art of HumanComputer Interface Design. Addison-Wesley,
Reading, MA, pp. 235243. Nielsen, J., 1994. In: Nielsen, J., Mack,
R.L. (Eds.), Heuristic Evaluation, in Usability Inspection Methods,
vol. xxiv. Wiley, New York, NY, p. 413. Nielsen, J., Del Galdo, E.,
1996. International User Interfaces, vol. x. Wiley, New York, p.
276. ODonnell, S.M., 1994. Programming for the World: a Guide to
Internationalization, vol. xv. PTR Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs,
NJ, p. 440.
852
S.-T. Shen et al. / Interacting with Computers 18 (2006)
820852
Parasuram, T.V., 2003. China to Top Global Economy by 2050,
India to Come Third. The Indian Express. Taylor, D., 1992. Global
Software: Developing Applications for the International Market,
vol. xvi. Springer, New York p. 319. Taylor, S., 2004. Indonesia.
University of Texas at DallasMBA International Management Studies.
Uren, E., Howard, R., Perinotti, T., 1993. Software
Internationalization and Localization: An Introduction, vol. xx.
Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, p. 300. Yeo, A., 1996. World-Wide
CHI: cultural user interfaces, a silver lining in cultural
diversity. SIGCHI 28 (3), 47.