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The profession of technical communication is undergoing fundamental changes due to automation, digitalization, and globalization. The working practices of technical writers have shifted considerably; communication, collaboration and knowledge sharing are highly relevant today. As a result, technical writers typically work in integrated agile teams. The content of technical writers’ work has changed as well, due to technological advances and a more prominent role of end users in the design process. These developments imply that technical writers need to acquire more and different competencies than before. A recent competence framework for technical communication (TecCOMFrame) is evaluated, and suggestions are made for updating this framework.

Participants in this workshop will be acquainted with five feedback mechanisms that are proven to enhance students’ learning experiences and their performance: peer feedback, 360-degree feedback, feedback for self-regulated learners, feedback for multidisciplinary groups and co-creation of assessment rubrics. Interviews with teachers were held to get more insight in their ideas about these mechanisms. Student opinions were collected by means of a survey. The results showed that teachers and students consider feedback as important, and that they are interested in different feedback mechanisms. However, the feedback mechanisms are not often used. In the workshop, we will discuss possibilities for the implementation of the mechanisms in education.

Purpose: Although various researchers have paid attention to differences in the way Chinese and Western documents are structured, only few have investigated how Chinese and Western users differ in their way of using instructions. This study experimentally investigates the effects Chinese and Western manual structures have on Chinese and Western users, in terms of task performance, user satisfaction, and information selection. Method: A 3x2 randomized experiment (N = 127) was conducted, with participants’ cultural background (Chinese living in China, Chinese living in the Netherlands, and Westerners) and manual structure (Chinese versus Western) as independent variables and task performance, user satisfaction, and information selection as dependent variables. Supported by a manual, participants performed tasks with Excel and afterwards filled out a satisfaction questionnaire. To investigate information selection, eye-tracking data were collected. Results: Regarding task performance and user satisfaction, no significant main and interaction effects were found. Regarding information selection, our research confirmed some of the hypothesized differences between Chinese and Western users: Chinese users pay less attention to structuring elements (table of contents and headings) and more attention to visuals. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that cultural adaptations of the structure of manuals do not really matter: Chinese and Western users perform equally well and have similar satisfaction scores with Western and Chinese manual structures. Paradoxically, the differences found in users’ information selection behaviors provided some support for the differences in document design practices. However, users of both cultures appear to be sufficiently flexible in using instructions that are not culturally adapted.

The ARCS Model of Motivational Design has been used myriad times to design motivational instructions that focus on attention, relevance, confidence and satisfaction in order to motivate students. The Instructional Materials Motivation Survey (IMMS) is a 36-item situational measure of people's reactions to instructional materials in the light of the ARCS model. Although the IMMS has been used often, both as a pretest and a posttest tool serving as either a motivational needs assessment prior to instruction or a measure of people's reactions to instructional materials afterward, the IMMS so far has not been validated extensively, taking statistical and theoretical aspects of the survey into account. This paper describes such an extensive validation study, for which the IMMS was used in a self-directed instructional setting aimed at working with technology (a cellular telephone). Results of structural equation modeling show that the IMMS can be reduced to 12 items. This Reduced Instructional Materials Motivation Survey IMMS (RIMMS) is preferred over the original IMMS. The parsimonious RIMMS measures the four constructs attention, relevance, confidence and satisfaction of the ARCS model well, and reflects its conditional nature.

This paper describes the participatory development process of a web-based communication system focusing on disease management, particularly infection control of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). These infections are becoming a major public health issue; they can have serious consequences such as pneumonia, sepsis or death [1]. This makes it even more important for people to be provided with up-to-date and reliable information. Users of a bilingual communication system (Dutch and German) participated in the development process via a needs assessment, the co-creation of the content and the system via usability tests, and in the summative evaluation of the usage of the system. The system enabled users to search efficiently and effectively for practical and relevant information. Moreover, we found that the participation of the intended users is a prerequisite to create a fit between the needs and expectations of the end-users, the technology and the social context of usage of technology. The summative evaluation showed that the system was frequently used (approximately 11,000 unique visitors per month). The most popular categories include ‘MRSA in general’ (20%, both languages) and ‘Acquiring MRSA’ (17% NL, 13% GER). Most users enter the site using internet search engines (Google) instead of the on-site search engine. When they are on the site, they prefer convenient searching via FAQ or related questions. Furthermore, the results showed that the participation of stakeholders is a prerequisite for a successful implementation of the system. To guide the participation of stakeholders we developed a roadmap that integrates human-centered development with business modelling activities.

As time moves on, a trend crystallizes that sets new requirements on content management systems. The circle of users shifts from a small technically experienced group to a large network of inexperienced editors. Literature stresses that a higher need for usability is present if personnel with a low grade of human computer interaction expertise is using a system. But how can system designers accomplish a high level of usability? This study suggests a preview as an important factor for strengthening the usability (effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction) of a content management system. The findings of this study support the hypothesis: the results showed that a preview enhances the userspsila satisfaction with the system. Moreover, the study shows that the userspsila confidence to be able to work with the system is an important factor; the results showed positive correlations between confidence and satisfaction and between confidence and effectiveness.

Urologische aandoeningen blijken taboes op te werpen die een effectieve behandeling belemmeren. Patiënten uiten problemen nauwelijks en accepteren een verminderd levensgeluk omdat zij zich schamen en vanwege het bestaan van vooroordelen. Ze komen daardoor niet of te laat bij een behandelaar. Potentiële patiënten hebben weinig besef van urologische aandoeningen en tonen onbegrip voor de effecten ervan op het levensgeluk. Doelgerichte voorlichting is nodig om (potentiële) patiënten te informeren over hoe de klachten te verlichten zijn. - A taboo on urological complaints hinders effective treatment A taboo on urological complaints hinders effective treatment. Patients do not talk about their problems and they wait too long to consult a doctor because they feel ashamed and because of the existence of prejudices. As a result of this, they accept a lower quality of life. Prospective patients have a lack of knowledge about urological complaints and they do not understand that these complaints can affect the quality of life. Tailored information about urological complaints is needed.

De eerste computerhandleidingen voor beginners (tutorials) werden in de jaren tachtig van de vorige eeuw geschreven in ‘lopend proza’, maar mede onder invloed van het onderzoek van Carroll c.s. naar het gedrag van beginnende computergebruikers kregen de handleidingen een meer instructief karakter om ze geschikt te maken voor ‘hands-on’ gebruik. In de jaren negentig was deze aanpak algemeen geaccepteerd en leidde onderzoek tot een aantal verfijningen, met name door een afgewogen dosering van declaratieve informatie, door aandacht voor fouthulp en door onderzoek naar de effecten van oefeningen en aansporingen aan de lezer om zelf het programma verder te ‘verkennen’. Rond de eeuwwisseling groeide de aandacht voor ‘belevingselementen’ in tutorials, zoals in de vorm van een duidelijk aanwezige tutor en agents in de vorm van (fictieve) medegebruikers. De geschiedenis van de tutorial wordt gekenschetst als een goed voorbeeld van de wijze waarop praktijk, theorievorming en onderzoek hand in hand kunnen gaan.

In this paper we describe an experiment aimed at determining the most effective and natural orientation of a virtual guide that gives route directions in a 3D virtual environment. We hypothesized that, due to the presence of mirrored gestures, having the route provider directly face the route seeker would result in a less effective and less natural route description than having the route provider adapt his orientation to that of the route seeker. To compare the effectiveness of the different orientations, after having received a route description the participants in our experiment had to ‘virtually’ traverse the route using prerecorded route segments. The results showed no difference in effectiveness between the two orientations, but suggested that the orientation where the speaker directly faces the route seeker is more natural.

Improving the usability of government portal sites requires a focus shift from system to user in both research and design. Empirical studies into user behavior are needed to support decisions on navigation, labeling and search systems. This paper presents such a study. Through scenario based interviews data were collected on citizens’ information seeking needs and search strategies. Additionally, server logs files were analyzed. The results demonstrated the complexity of the search task from a user perspective, and provided suggestions for user friendly portal design. On the basis of the results it was recommended that portal sites’ navigation systems should be context-rich, and labeling systems should be adapted to citizens’ colloquial speech.

Adding declarative information to the essential procedural information in instructions for use might have different effects. Previous research examined the effect of declarative information on the ability to work with the system that is described in the instructions. However, the results of the various experiments were not conclusive. Moreover, other possible effects of declarative information were never investigated before. In the present experiment, the effects of two different types of declarative information on task performance, on cognitive load and on self-efficacy were examined. The results demonstrated that the two types of declarative information negatively affected cognitive load and self-efficacy ratings. The effects on task performance were positive, but moderate.

Instructieve teksten bevatten verschillende soorten informatie, waarbij vaak een onderscheid gemaakt wordt tussen procedurele informatie en declaratieve informatie. De procedurele informatie omvat de handelingen die de lezer moet uitvoeren, de voorwaarden waaronder dat moet gebeuren en de effecten van die handelingen. De term declaratieve informatie wordt soms gebruikt voor alle overige informatie (vgl. Ummelen 1997b), soms ook in meer specifieke zin voor informatie over de werking en de toepassing van het systeem.Voor de duidelijkheid gebruiken we voor deze informatie daarom in dit artikel de term systeeminformatie. (Meer verfijnde indelingen van informatiesoorten in instructieve teksten zijn onder meer te vinden in Steehouder & Jansen, 1997; Farkas, 1999; Becker-Mrotzek, 1997). Een van de discussiepunten in de literatuur over instructieve teksten is de vraag in hoeverre het zinvol is om systeeminformatie aan de procedurele informatie toe te voegen (vgl. Karreman & Steehouder, 2000).

Due to the ongoing globalization, cross-cultural and intercultural communication have become increasingly important within the academic and professional discipline of technical communication. Understanding cultural differences and their possible impact on user instructions might be critical for designing effective user instructions—in terms of usability and user experience—for broad and international user groups. However, the available research on cross-cultural and intercultural technical communication is limited and diverse, with relatively many informal and small-scale studies and somewhat scattered findings. Therefore, this dissertation aimed at more extensively and comprehensively investigating the cultural differences between China and Western countries that might affect the design of user instructions. Three types of research were conducted, representing three different angles: document design practices manifested in existing user instructions, expert views and experiences of technical communicators, and user research. In sum, the outcomes of the studies presented in this dissertation illustrate the complexity of cultural impact on user instructions, relativize the importance of cultural differences for usability, and suggests that future research in cross-cultural and intercultural technical communication should focus more on user experience.

Concerning the design of user instructions, two view can be distinguished. The traditional view considers instructions as purely instrumental documents. The more and more emerging affective view still assumes that above all, instructions should enable readers to perform tasks. But in order to accomplish this goal, the instructions should motivate readers to keep on reading long enough and carefully enough to perform a task. The studies presented in this dissertation were aimed at giving insight in the use and effects of so-called motivational elements in user instructions (e.g., testimonials, control steps). For most of these studies, the ARCS Model of Motivational Design (Keller, 1983, 1987abc, 1999, 2010) was used to design the motivational instructions. According to this model, instruction design should be aimed at four goals in order to motivate readers, namely Attention, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction. The described research shows that when things go smoothly, motivation does not seem so much of an issue. In such cases, motivational elements may increase text appreciation, but such elements are unlikely to affect user confidence or usability aspects. In those cases, instruction does it all. In those cases, advocates of the traditional view on the design of user instructions seem to be right. When setbacks are met, however, the affective view seems more fruitful and motivational elements could do the trick. In those cases, instruction does not do it all. Then, in Von Goethe’s words, “instruction does much, but encouragement does everything.”