On the trends and the problems of User Studies

User study의 추이 및 문제점에 관한 고찰

There are two broad classes of user studies, in terms of their purposes or a n.0, pplications. One class might be termed basic studies, in which the purpose is to create or obtain knowledge regarding information needs and uses with no particular a n.0, pplication. The second type of study might be termed a n.0, pplied. The aim of second type is preparing standards to evaluate and improve existing information systems or to design new systems. The trends of user study tend toward basic research from a n.0, pplied ones. Furthermore, not only the broad-based studies change with special setting up and subdivided studies, but also the scopes of user study vary social scientist, human scientist, and even common users from limited natural scientists and technologists earlier. The aims of this paper is to summarize continuously pointed problems of user studies and to survey the state of the arts by reviewing the trends of user studies. The major problems of user studies are terminology, conceptualization, and methodology. These terms are essential to this study, and very important to decide the research fields and to select a method of survey, respectively. And in order to predict the user needs, studies of 'information needs' are inevitable instead those of 'information demands' which principally studied till nowadays. On the other hand, to reduce the problems of user studies, it is needed more qualitative studies ever than before and cooperation with other areas, for example, behavioral 'science, psychology, communication science and so forth.