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Findings from observational studies of collaborative work
John C. Tang
Focus:
"The work activity of small
groups of three to four people was videotaped and analyzed in order to
understand collaborative work and to guide the development of tools to support
it. The software tools we currently have are often based on a single user
model. Even those that are based on multiple user models define structures of
interaction that restrict fluid collaboration. We need observe how people
collaborate then build software that facilitates collaboration based on those
observations, giving the users the "tools" that are
"naturally" defined in face-to-face interaction. In this experiment
small groups of people were observed in a collaborative design task using a
shared drawing space.
Specific features of collaborative work activity that raise design implications
for collaborative technology:
1. collaborators
use hand gestures to uniquely communicate significant information
2. the
process of creating and using drawings conveys much information not contained
in the resulting drawings
3. the
drawing space is an important resource for the group in mediating their
collaboration
4. there
is a fluent mix of activity in the drawing space
5. the
spatial orientation among the collaborators and the drawing space has a role in
structuring their activity