Recently I found some written instructions I had prepared several years ago to help my parents program their VCR. It took me three pages to write out the steps to record a program. Where applicable each step included a hand drawn representation of the button the VCR (and/or the remote) to ensure clarity and understanding.
The first page explained how to bring up the menu to record a program in the future. The second provided further details and discussed potential troubleshooting strategies. The third included the final steps and introduced the steps for recording a program currently being viewed. Even with these detailed instructions mistakes were made and recordings were missed. We will never know if the error was occurred in the programming stage or if show never actually aired.
I believe I also wrote out similar instructions for my grandmother. As she was even less inclined to adapt she opted to use her own technique. My grandmother would start recording a program hours in advance of its airing before leaving her home by putting the television on the desired channel and pressing the record button on the VCR. It may have required hours of rewinding but it worked for her. Since this time technology has evolved and we now “one touch” programming through the use of on-screen guides that list program dates and times. However, I’m pretty sure if my grandmother were alive today she would use her old system – start recording on the PVR when she went out rather than using the on-screen guide.
In 1988 Donald Norman wrote about this issue in “The Psychology of Everyday Design“. He made reference to digital watches and microwave ovens as well as VCRs as examples of devices that were difficult to operate. Yet they were supposed to be for an average person to use on a daily basis. Why were they so difficult to use? One theory suggests that the skill set required to design such devices doesn’t necessarily translate in a way that is evident to someone who does not have a similar background or training. What is apparent to one is not necessarily so to others. A lack of applying design principles (human-computer interaction) or examining how the device works in real use (e.g. usability testing) were provided as possible reasons. One resolution was to utilize technical writers, those skilled in interpreting complex electronic interfaces using plain language written material Some things are made to be obvious or intuitive – you use the sharp edge of the knife to cut. Others have developed over time with common usage – it is universally understood that turning the knob is a necessary step in opening a door.
Human behaviour is like running water. It always finds the path of least resistance. But can we ‘afford’ this type of affordance in health care?
