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Cognitive Models

Cognitive models aim to model aspects of how users think, including their understanding, knowledge, intentions, and mental processing. Common categories of cognitive models include goal and task hierarchies, linguistic models, physical and device models, and architectural models. Goal and task hierarchy models represent mental processing as dividing complex problems into subgoals and tasks. Linguistic models analyze language between users and systems to understand cognitive difficulty. Physical models like the Keystroke Level Model are based on human motor abilities and model task execution times.

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Jan Levi Pangilinan
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48 views

Cognitive Models

Cognitive models aim to model aspects of how users think, including their understanding, knowledge, intentions, and mental processing. Common categories of cognitive models include goal and task hierarchies, linguistic models, physical and device models, and architectural models. Goal and task hierarchy models represent mental processing as dividing complex problems into subgoals and tasks. Linguistic models analyze language between users and systems to understand cognitive difficulty. Physical models like the Keystroke Level Model are based on human motor abilities and model task execution times.

Uploaded by

Jan Levi Pangilinan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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cognitive models

Cognitive models

• goal and task hierarchies

• linguistic

• physical and device

• architectural
Cognitive models

• They model aspects of user:


– understanding
– knowledge
– intentions
– processing

• Common categorisation:
– Competence vs. Performance
– Computational flavour
– No clear divide
Goal and task hierarchies

• Mental processing as divide-and-conquer


• Example: sales report
produce report
gather data
. find book names
. . do keywords search of names database
. . . … further sub-goals
. . sift through names and abstracts by hand
. . . … further sub-goals
. search sales database - further sub-goals
layout tables and histograms - further sub-goals
write description - further sub-goals
goals vs. tasks

• goals – intentions
what you would like to be true
• tasks – actions
how to achieve it

• GOMS – goals are internal

• HTA – actions external


– tasks are abstractions
Issues for goal hierarchies

• Granularity
– Where do we start?
– Where do we stop?
• Routine learned behaviour, not problem
solving
– The unit task
• Conflict
– More than one way to achieve a goal
• Error
Techniques

• Goals, Operators, Methods and


Selection (GOMS)

• Cognitive Complexity Theory (CCT)

• Hierarchical Task Analysis (HTA) -


Chapter 15
GOMS

Goals
– what the user wants to achieve

Operators
– basic actions user performs

Methods
– decomposition of a goal into subgoals/operators

Selection
– means of choosing between competing methods
GOMS example

GOAL: CLOSE-WINDOW
. [select GOAL: USE-MENU-METHOD
. MOVE-MOUSE-TO-FILE-MENU
. PULL-DOWN-FILE-MENU
. CLICK-OVER-CLOSE-OPTION
GOAL: USE-CTRL-W-METHOD
. PRESS-CONTROL-W-KEYS]

For a particular user:

Rule 1: Select USE-MENU-METHOD unless another


rule applies
Rule 2: If the application is GAME,
select CTRL-W-METHOD
Cognitive Complexity Theory

• Two parallel descriptions:


– User production rules
– Device generalised transition networks

• Production rules are of the form:


– if condition then action

• Transition networks covered under


dialogue models
Example: editing with vi

• Production rules are in long-term memory


• Model working memory as attribute-value
mapping:
(GOAL perform unit task)
(TEXT task is insert space)
(TEXT task is at 5 23)
(CURSOR 8 7)
• Rules are pattern-matched to working
memory,
e.g., LOOK-TEXT task is at %LINE %COLUMN
is true, with LINE = 5 COLUMN = 23.
Four rules to model inserting
a space
Active rules:
SELECT-INSERT-SPACE New working memory
INSERT-SPACE-MOVE-FIRST (GOAL insert space)
INSERT-SPACE-DOIT (NOTE executing insert space)
INSERT-SPACE-DONE (LINE 5) (COLUMN 23)

SELECT-INSERT-SPACE
matches current working memory

(SELECT-INSERT-SPACE
IF (AND (TEST-GOAL perform unit task)
(TEST-TEXT task is insert space)
(NOT (TEST-GOAL insert space))
(NOT (TEST-NOTE executing insert space)))
THEN ( (ADD-GOAL insert space)
(ADD-NOTE executing insert space)
(LOOK-TEXT task is at %LINE %COLUMN)))
Notes on CCT

• Parallel model
• Proceduralisation of actions
• Novice versus expert style rules
• Error behaviour can be represented
• Measures
– depth of goal structure
– number of rules
– comparison with device description
Problems with goal hierarchies

• a post hoc technique

• expert versus novice

• How cognitive are they?


Linguistic notations

• Understanding the user's behaviour and


cognitive difficulty based on analysis of
language between user and system.
• Similar in emphasis to dialogue models

• Backus–Naur Form (BNF)


• Task–Action Grammar (TAG)
Backus-Naur Form (BNF)

• Very common notation from computer science


• A purely syntactic view of the dialogue
• Terminals
– lowest level of user behaviour
– e.g. CLICK-MOUSE, MOVE-MOUSE
• Nonterminals
– ordering of terminals
– higher level of abstraction
– e.g. select-menu, position-mouse
Example of BNF

• Basic syntax:
– nonterminal ::= expression
• An expression
– contains terminals and nonterminals
– combined in sequence (+) or as alternatives (|)

draw line ::= select line + choose points + last point


select line ::= pos mouse + CLICK MOUSE
choose points ::= choose one | choose one + choose points
choose one ::= pos mouse + CLICK MOUSE
last point ::= pos mouse + DBL CLICK MOUSE
pos mouse ::= NULL | MOVE MOUSE+ pos mouse
Measurements with BNF

• Number of rules (not so good)

• Number of + and | operators

• Complications
– same syntax for different semantics
– no reflection of user's perception
– minimal consistency checking
Task Action Grammar (TAG)

• Making consistency more explicit

• Encoding user's world knowledge

• Parameterised grammar rules

• Nonterminals are modified to include


additional semantic features
Consistency in TAG
• In BNF, three UNIX commands would be described as:
copy ::= cp + filename + filename | cp + filenames + directory
move ::= mv + filename + filename | mv + filenames + directory
link ::= ln + filename + filename | ln + filenames + directory

• No BNF measure could distinguish between this and a


less consistent grammar in which

link ::= ln + filename + filename | ln + directory + filenames


Consistency in TAG (cont'd)

• consistency of argument order made explicit


using a parameter, or semantic feature for file
operations
• Feature Possible values
Op = copy; move; link

• Rules
file-op[Op] ::=command[Op] + filename + filename
| command[Op] + filenames + directory
command[Op = copy] ::= cp
command[Op = move] ::= mv
command[Op = link] ::= ln
Other uses of TAG

• User’s existing knowledge

• Congruence between features and


commands

• These are modelled as derived rules


Physical and device models

• The Keystroke Level Model (KLM)


• Buxton's 3-state model

• Based on empirical knowledge of human


motor system
• User's task: acquisition then execution.
– these only address execution
• Complementary with goal hierarchies
Keystroke Level Model (KLM)

• lowest level of (original) GOMS


• six execution phase operators
– Physical motor: K - keystroking
P - pointing
H - homing
D - drawing
– Mental M - mental preparation
– System R - response

• times are empirically determined.


Texecute = TK + TP + TH + TD + TM + TR
KLM example
GOAL: ICONISE-WINDOW
[select
GOAL: USE-CLOSE-METHOD
. MOVE-MOUSE-TO- FILE-MENU
. PULL-DOWN-FILE-MENU
. CLICK-OVER-CLOSE-OPTION
GOAL: USE-CTRL-W-METHOD
PRESS-CONTROL-W-KEY]

USE-CTRL-W-METHOD USE-CLOSE-METHOD
• compare alternatives:
• USE-CTRL-W-METHOD vs. H[to kbd] 0.40 P[to menu] 1.1
• USE-CLOSE-METHOD M 1.35 B[LEFT down] 0.1
K[ctrlW key] 0.28 M 1.35
• assume hand starts on mouse P[to option] 1.1
B[LEFT up] 0.1
Total 2.03 s Total 3.75 s
Architectural models

• All of these cognitive models make


assumptions about the architecture of
the human mind.
• Long-term/Short-term memory
• Problem spaces
• Interacting Cognitive Subsystems
• Connectionist
• ACT
Display-based interaction

• Most cognitive models do not deal with


user observation and perception

• Some techniques have been extended


to handle system output
(e.g., BNF with sensing terminals, Display-TAG)
but problems persist

• Exploratory interaction versus planning

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