The General Conception of the HCI Discipline is generalised from the General Conception of the HCI Engineering Discipline . The General Conception comprises HCI knowledge, which takes a variety of forms , distinguishing the interactive system of people and computers, what it does and how well it does it. The knowledge supports HCI practices of design and implementation of people using computers to do something as wanted. This Conception is general to any approach to HCI.
Key Concepts, Footnotes and Citations
The General Conception (F1) of the HCI Discipline (C1) is generalised from the General Conception of the HCI Engineering Discipline (1.2). The General Conception comprises HCI knowledge, which takes a variety of forms (F2), distinguishing the interactive system of people and computers, what it does and how well it does it. (C2) The knowledge supports HCI practices of design (F3) and implementation of people using computers to do something as wanted. (C3) This Conception is general to any approach to HCI.
Key concepts are shown in bold on their first appearance only.
Footnotes
(F1) ‘Conception’ is preferred here, as it clearly implies a set of linked concepts, which is what a conception is. However, within HCI more generally , ‘Framework’ would do as well. Some might even prefer ‘Model’ or most generally ‘Approach’.
(F2) Such forms of knowledge include: guidelines; models; methods; heuristics etc.
(F3) Design here includes evaluation.
Citations
Long and Dowell (1989)
(C1) ‘The framework expresses the essential characteristics of the HCI discipline and can be summarised as ‘ the use of HCI knowledge to support practices seeking solutions to the general problem of HCI’. (Page 9, Abstract, Lines 11-14)
(C2) ‘Second, the scope of the general problem of HCI is defined by reference to humans, computers, and the work they perform.’ (Page 9, Abstract, Lines 7-9)
(C3) ‘Most definitions assume three primary characteristics of disciplines: knowledge; practice; and a general problem.’ (Page 11, Lines 26 and 27)