Strategic Directions in Human Computer Interaction

Human Computer Interaction (HCI) is the study of how people design, implement, and use interactive computer systems, and how computers affect individuals, organizations, and society. HCI is a research area of increasingly central significance to computer science, other scientific and engineering disciplines, and an ever expanding array of application domains. This more prominent role follows from the widely perceived need to expand the focus of computer science research beyond traditional hardware and software issues to attempt to better understand how technology can more effectively support people in accomplishing their goals. At the same time that a human-centered approach to system development is of growing significance, factors conspire to make the design and development of systems even more difficult than in the past. This increased difficulty follows from the disappearance of boundaries between applications as we start to support people's real activities; between machines as we move to distributed computing; between media as we expand systems to include video, sound, graphics, and communication facilities; and between people as we begin to realize the importance of supporting organizations and group activities. This report summarizes selected strategic directions in human computer interaction research, sets them within an historical context of research accomplishments, and tries to convey not only the significance but the excitement of the field.