Visualization of Computer Users' Cognitive Strategies and Behaviors.

摘要

Our research focuses on supporting scientists and engineers working collaboratively on shared artifacts such as documents, images, and programs. To support them fully, we need to understand their cognitive activities as they interact both with the shared artifact and with each other. Our future studies of the collective cognition of a group will be guided by our earlier work in studying the cognitive activities of a single individual. Focusing initially on the task of expository writing, we have designed a computer system to support writers, developed a theory of cognitive processing, and implemented several tools to help us visualize the writers' cognitive processes. We began with two major goals: first, to develop an advanced writing environment suitable for professionals who write as a part of their jobs and second, to use that system to study writers' cognitive strategies. A major theoretical component was a theory of cognitive modes and the strategies that guide writers in moving among these modes. This theory was synthesized from research in composition theory, cognitive psychology, and our own experiences as writers.