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Chapter 4 of I. Scott MacKenzie’s Human-Computer Interaction…

Chapter 4 of I. Scott MacKenzie’s Human-Computer Interaction: An Empirical Research Perspective and “Survey Research in HCI” by Hendrik Müller, Aaron Sedley, and Elizabeth Ferrall-Nunge together provide a strong overview of the use of surveys in human-computer interaction research. Imagine you are running a study where you want to evaluate users of exercise monitors (e.g. Fitbit, Apple Watch, Pixel Watch, etc.) about their use habits. Because you want to evaluate a variety of tools, you opt for survey research. First, describe some data you will seek to gather from this survey. The data you gather must include at least one example each of nominal, ordinal, interval, ratio, and qualitative data. Make sure to identify which data are of each type. Then, describe who the study’s population, sampling frame, sample, and respondents would be, and explain how each of those categories is derived from the previous one. Finally, describe at least two reasons your study’s findings might not be generalizable, either due to issues of validity or due to potential biases. Remember, our goal is to assess your understanding of the relevant course concepts, not compare your answer to a pre-established list of correct answers. You may articulate your assumptions or add additional details necessary to allow you to demonstrate you understanding.