| Автор | Mirel, Barbara |
| Дата выпуска | 1992 |
| dc.description | In analyzing audiences for software manuals, documentation developers need to move past a strictly cognitive vision of users' needs and examine the social and organizational factors that influence task performance and instructional needs. In order to discover the ways in which social and organizational factors affect users' tasks and their acquisition of knowledge and skills, I conducted a survey of 25 people who use databases at work. All survey respondents use database programs as tools for conducting job tasks that involve complex analyses and reporting of data. I examined the relationship between people's technical proficiency and task complexity and their job roles, professional responsibilities, flexibility in work arrangements and modes of workplace learning. Findings show that learning to use databases for complex tasks in work contexts entails more than merely learning concepts and procedures for executing program functions. Users need to learn ways of manipulating a program, integrating and combining its functions in inventive ways to serve the purposes of various types of job tasks and to support professional approaches to these tasks. |
| Формат | application.pdf |
| Издатель | Taylor & Francis Group |
| Копирайт | Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC |
| Название | Analyzing audiences for software manuals: A survey of instructional needs for “real world tasks” |
| Тип | research-article |
| DOI | 10.1080/10572259209359489 |
| Electronic ISSN | 1542-7625 |
| Print ISSN | 1057-2252 |
| Журнал | Technical Communication Quarterly |
| Том | 1 |
| Первая страница | 13 |
| Последняя страница | 38 |
| Аффилиация | Mirel, Barbara; Assistant professor of English, Illinois Institute of Technology |
| Выпуск | 1 |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Anderson, John. 1981. Acquisition of Cognitive Skill., Office of Naval Research. Technical Report 81–1. Pittsburgh: Carnegie Mellon U. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Anderson, John, Boyle, C. Franklin, Farrell, Robert and Reiser, Brian. 1987. “Cognitive Principles in the Design of Computer Tutors.”. In Modelling Cognition., Edited by: Morris, Peter. 93–133. New York: Wiley. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Attewell, Paul and Rule, James. 1984. “Computing and Organizations: What We Know and What We Don't Know.”. Communications of the ACM, 27: 1184–92. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Brown, Robert and Herndl, Carl. 1986. “An Ethnographic Study of Corporate Writing: Job Status as Reflected in Written Text.”. In Functional Approaches to Writing Research Perspectives., Edited by: Couture, Barbara. 11–28. Norwood: Ablex. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Card, Stuart, Moran, Thomas and Newell, Allen. 1980. “Computer Text‐Editing: An Information‐Processing Analysis of a Routine Cognitive Skill.”. Cognitive Psychology, 12: 32–74. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Carroll, John M., Smith‐Kerker, Penny, Ford, J. and Mazur‐Rimetz, S. 1986. “The Minimal Manual.”. Human‐Computer Interaction, 2: 287–317. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Carroll, John M. and Aaronson, Amy P. 1988. “Learning by Doing with Simulated Intelligent Help.”. Communications of the ACM, 31: 1064–79. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Charney, Davida, Reder, Lynne and Wells, Gail. 1988. “Studies of Elaboration in Instructional Texts.”. In Effective Documentation: What We Have Learned from Research., Edited by: Doheny‐Farina, Stephen. 47–72. Cambridge: MIT. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Cypher, Allen. 1986. “The Structure of Users’ Activities.”. In User‐Centered System Design., Edited by: Norman, Donald and Draper, Stephen. 243–263. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Damodaran, Leela. 1981. “The Role of User Support.”. In Man‐Computer Interaction: Human Factors Aspects of Computers and People., Edited by: Schackel, B. 13–19. Alphenaan den Rijn, , Neth.: Sijhoff and Noordhoff. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Doheny‐Farina, Stephen. 1986. “Writing in an Emerging Organization.”. Written Communication, 3.2: 158–85. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Duffy, Thomas, Mehlenbacher, Brad and Palmer, Jim. 1989. “The Evaluation of Online Help Systems: A Conceptual Model.”. In The Society of Text: Hypertext, Hypermedia, and the Social Construction of Information, Edited by: Barrett, E. 362–87. Cambridge: MIT P. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Eason, K. D. 1977. “The Potential and Reality of Task Performance by Man‐Computer Systems.”. In Computing and People., Edited by: Pakin, Andrew. 55–62. London: Arnold. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Foss, Donald, Smith‐Kerker, Penny and Rosson, Mary Beth. 1987. “On Comprehending a Computer Manual: Analysis of Variables Affecting Performance.”. International Journal of Man‐Machine Studies, 26: 277–300. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Harrison, Theresa. 1987. “Frameworks for the Study of Writing in Organizational Contexts.”. Written Communication, 4.1: 3–23. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Johnson, Bob. 1990. “User‐Centeredness, Situatedness, and Designing the Media of Computer Documentation.”. In Proceedings of S1GDOC ’90, 55–62. New York: ACM. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Kieras, David and Bovair, Susan. 1985. The Acquisition of Procedures from Text: A Production‐System Analysis of Transfer of Training., Office of Naval Research. Technical Report 16. Ann Arbor: U of Michigan. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Kieras, David and Poison, P. 1985. “An Approach to the Formal Analysis of User Complexity.”. International Journal of Man‐Machine Studies, 22: 365–94. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Kraut, Robert, Dumais, Susan and Koch, Susan. 1989. “Computerization, Productivity, and Quality of Work‐Life.”. Communications of the ACM, 32: 220–38. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | KPMG Peat Marwick. 1989. Management Measures in End User Computing., Toronto: Peat Marwick Consulting Group. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Lave, Jean. 1988. Cognition in Practice., Cambridge: Cambridge UP. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Linde, Lena. 1989. “An Information‐Seeker's Mental Model of the Context and Search Principles in a Database.”. In Man‐Computer Interaction Research., Edited by: Klix, Friedhart, Streitz, Norbert Albert, Waern, Yvonne and Wandke, H. 149–59. Amsterdam: Horth‐Holland. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Mirel, Barbara, Feinberg, Susan and Allmendinger, Leif. 1991. “Designing Manuals for Active Learning Styles.”. Technical Communication, 38: 75–87. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Norman, Donald. 1986. “Cognitive Engineering.”. In User‐Centered System Design., Edited by: Norman, Donald and Draper, Stephen. 31–61. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Partridge, Stephen. 1986. “So What Is Task Orientation, Anyway?”. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communications, PC‐29: 26–32. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Ray, Howard. 1985. “A Study of the Effect of Different Data Models on Casual Users’ Performance in Writing Database Queries.”. International Journal of Man‐Machine Studies, 23: 249–62. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Redish, Janice. 1988. “Reading to Learn to Do.”. The Technical Writing Teacher, 15.3: 223–33. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Rosenbaum, Stephanie and Walters, R. Dennis. 1986. “Audience Diversity: A Major Challenge in Computer Documentation.”. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communications, PC‐29: 48–55. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Schneider, M. L. 1984. “Ergonomic Considerations in the Design of Command Languages.”. In Human Factors and Interactive Computer Systems., Edited by: Vassilou, Yannis. Norwood: Ablex. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Schon, Donald. 1987. Educating the Reflective Practitioner., San Francisco: Jossey‐Bass. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Schriver, K., Hayes, John, Danley, Caroll, Wuff, Wendie, Davies, Lisa, Graham, Debra, Cerroni, Karen, Flood, Edward and Bond, Eric. 1986. Desiging Computer Documentation: A Review of the Relevant Literature., Communications Design Center. Technical Report 31. Pittsburgh: Carnegie Mellon U. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Simpson, Mark. “How Usability Testing Can Aid the Development of Online Documentation.”. Proceedings of SIGDOC '90. pp.41–47. New York: ACM. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Spencer, J. William. 1988. “The Role of Text in the Processing of People in Organizations.”. Discourse Processes, 11: 61–78. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Suchman, Lucy. 1987. Plans and Situated Actions: The Problems of Human‐Machine Communication., Cambridge: Cambridge UP. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Troolin, Pat and Sahlin, Christer. 1990. A Descriptive Study of the Behavior of New Users of Unicos Man Pages., Eagan, MN: Cray Research. Unpublished technical report. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Whitefield, Andy. 1989. “Constructing Appropriate Models of Computer Uses: The Case of Engineering Designers.”. In Cognitive Ergonomics and Human‐Computer Interactions., Edited by: Long, John and Whitefield, Andy. 66–94. Cambridge: Cambridge UP. |
| Библиографическая ссылка | Zuboff, Shoshana. 1984. In the Age of the Smart Machine: The Future of Work and Power, New York: Basic. |
