Minimizing information access cost or interaction cost

From perpendicular angel knowledgebase
Jump to navigation Jump to search

As referenced in the Wikipedia article on Human-Computer Interaction, this is one of 13 principles of display design outlined by Christopher Wickens et. al in the book An Introduction to Human Factors Engineering.

Minimizing Information Access Cost is the principle that describes the cost in time or effort that a user spends when their attention is diverted from one location to another form necessary information. For example, if a user needs to enter one screen to get a customer name, another to get an address, and a third for a phone number, this is significantly more costly in time and effort than if all of the information is presented on one screen. The same principle applies if the information needed for a task is all on one screen, but scattered in multiple locations.

The authors caution against minimizing legibility to meet this principle as it breaks the Make displays legible (or audible) principle.