IR interaction - School of Communication and Information
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Transcript IR interaction - School of Communication and Information
Interaction in
information retrieval
There is MUCH more to
searching than knowing
computers, networks &
commands, as there is
more to writing than
knowing word processing
packages
© Tefko Saracevic
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IR as interaction
If USER & USE central:
Interaction is a dominant feature
of contemporary IR
Interaction has many facets:
with
systems, technology
with texts viewed/retrieved
intermediaries with people
Several interactive IR models
none as widely accepted as
traditional IR model
Broader area: human-computer
interaction (HCI) studies
© Tefko Saracevic
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HCI: broader concepts
“Any interaction takes place
through one or more interfaces
& involves two or more
participants who each have
one or more purposes for the
interaction”
Storrs, 1994
Participants: people & artifacts ‘computer’ (everything in it)
Interface: a common boundary
Issue: identification of
important aspects, roles of each
© Tefko Saracevic
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HCI … definitions
“Interaction is the exchange of
information between
participants where each has the
purpose of using the exchange
to change the state of itself or of
one or more of others”
“An interaction is a dialogue
for the purpose of modifying
the state of one or more
participants”
Key concepts:
exchange, change
© Tefko Saracevic
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IR interaction is ...
“... the interactive communication
processes that occur during the
retrieval of information by
involving all the major
participants in IR, i.e. the user,
the intermediary, and the IR
system.”
Ingwersen, 1992
Involved:
users
intermediaries
(possibly)
everything in IR system
communication processes exchange of information
© Tefko Saracevic
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Central questions
What variables are involved?
models
give lists
How do they affect the process?
How to control?
experiments,
experience,
observation give answers
Do given interventions or
communications improve or
degrade the process?
e.g.
searcher’s (intermediaries or
end-users) actions
Can systems be designed so that
searcher’s intervention
improves performance?
© Tefko Saracevic
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Interactive IR models
Several models proposed
none
as widely accepted as the
traditional IR model
They all try to incorporate
objects (“texts”):
IR system & setting
interface
intermediary, if present
user’s characteristics
information
cognitive
aspects; task; problem;
interest; goal; preferences ...
social
environment
variety of processes between
them all.
© Tefko Saracevic
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User modeling
(treated in module 10, but introduced here to
illustrate one aspect of interaction)
Identifying elements about a user
that impact interaction, searching,
types of retrieval …:
who
is the user (e.g. education)
what is the problem, task at hand
what is the need; question
how much s/he knows about it
what will be used for
how much wanted, how fast
what environment is involved
Much more than just a question
Related
© Tefko Saracevic
to reference interview
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Ingwersen’s cognitive
model
Among the first to view IR
differently from traditional model
Included IR as system but also
things outside system that interact
objects – documents, images …
intermediary – you - & interface
user cognitive aspects
user & general environment
path of request (we call question)
inf.
from
environment (problem) to query
path
of cognitive changes
path of communication
various other paths of interactions
© Tefko Saracevic
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Ingwersen’s cognitive
model graphically
Information
objects
Interface/
Intermediary
Query
IR system
setting
User’s Environcognitive
ment
space
Request
Cognitive
transformations
Interactive
communication
© Tefko Saracevic
10
Belkin’s episodes model
Concentrates on what happen in
interaction as process
Ingwerson
concentrated on elements
Viewed interaction as a series of episodes
where a number of different things
happen over time
depending
on user’s goals, tasks
there is judgment, use, interpretation…
processes of navigation, comparison,
summarization …
involving different aspects of information &
inf. objects
While interacting we do diverse things,
perform various tasks, & involve
different objects
Think: what do you do while searching?
© Tefko Saracevic
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Belkin’s episodes
model
USER
USER
CO
CO
COMPARISON
USER
Goals
tasks
.....
INTERACTION
Judgment, use,
interpretation,
modification
REPRESENTATION
SUMMARIZATION
NA
NA
NAVIGATION
© Tefko Saracevic
INFORMATION
Type,
medium
mode
level
VISUALIZATION
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Stratified model - start:
A-C-A model of inf. use
Assumption: Users interact with IR
systems to use information
A-C-A model components:
Acquisition:
users
are getting information
Cognition:
users
are absorbing information
Application:
users
are using absorbed information
Could be re-iterative, go back & forth
Each involves
different
aspects, elements
interplays between them
Basis for interaction model
© Tefko Saracevic
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Saracevic’s stratified model
Interaction: sequence of
processes/episodes occurring in
several levels or strata*
= INTREPLAY between levels
Structure:
Several
User levels
Produce a Query - has characteristics
Several ‘Computer’ levels
They all meet on the Surface level
Dialogue enabled by Interface
user
utterances
computer ‘utterances’
Adaptation/changes in all
Geared toward Information use
© Tefko Saracevic
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Elements in the stratified
model of IR interaction
Situational
tasks...
Affective
intent..
Cognitive
knowledge
structure ...
Query
characteristics
Surface level
INTERFACE
Engineering
hardware, capacities...
Processing
software, algorithms...
Content
information resources - texts
representation ...
© Tefko Saracevic
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Roles of levels or strata
Defining of what’s involved
whassup?
Help in recognition/separation of
differing variables
each
strata or level involves
different elements, roles, &
processes
Observation of interaction
between strata - complex
dynamics
© Tefko Saracevic
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Interplay between levels
Interplay on user side:
Cognitive:
between cognitive structures of
texts & users
Affective: between intentions & other
Situational: between texts & tasks
Similar interplay on computer side
Surface:
searching,
navigation, browsing, display,
visualization, query characterization
Interplay judgments in searching:
evaluation
of results - relevance
Changing of models: situation, need ...
selection of search terms
resulting modifications - feedback
© Tefko Saracevic
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Intermediaries - YOU
Intermediaries could participate
as an additional interface many roles:
diagnostic
help in problem,
query formulation
system interface handling
selection, interpretation &
manipulation of inf. resources
interpretation of results
education of users
enablers of end-users
Basic role: optimizing results
Act in processes at different
levels
© Tefko Saracevic
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Implications
Interaction central to IR including in
searching of the Web
We see it on the surface level
But result of MANY variables, levels
& their interplay
IR interaction requires knowledge
of these levels & interplays
many
users have difficulties
so do many professionals
Design of interfaces for interaction
still lacking
People compensate in many ways
including trial & error, failures
© Tefko Saracevic
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What happens in
searching?
Highly reiterative process
back
& forth between user
modeling & (re)formulating search
strategy
goes on & on in many feedback
loops, twists & turns, shifts
Search strategy (the big picture)
selection/reselection
of sources
stating a query (search statement)
from a question
© Tefko Saracevic
terms, their expansions, logic,
qualifications, limitations
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Searching … (cont.)
Search tactics (action steps)
what
to do first, next
e.g. from broad to narrow searches
format of results
Evaluation of results
as
to magnitude - how much?
as to relevance - how well?
feedback to change after that
user
model - e.g. question
strategy - e.g. files, query
tactics - e.g. narrowing, broadening
© Tefko Saracevic
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Implications (Shuman)
Prepare carefully
Understand your opponent
e.g.
Anticipate
e.g.
Dialog, LexisNexis
hidden meaning of terms
Have a contingency plan
assessing
odds of success or
points of diminishing returns
Avoid ambiguity
inherent
in language
Stay loose!
© Tefko Saracevic
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Stay loose?
I copied that, but always
wandered what it really means?
Dictionary says:
not firmly fastened or fixed in
place
???? OK!
or
© Tefko Saracevic
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© Tefko Saracevic
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