Are users more diverse than designs? Testing and extending a 25 years old claim

摘要

Twenty-five years ago, Dennis Egan published a review on the impact of individual differences in human-computer interaction, where he claimed that users are more diverse than designs are. While being cited frequently, this claim has not been tested since then. An efficient research design for separating and comparing variance components is presented, together with a statistical model to test Egan's claim. The results of a pilot study indicate that Egan's claim does not universally hold. An extension to the claim is suggested, capturing the trade-offs when prioritizing user tasks. An alternative strategy towards universal design is proposed.