title: Improving visual search in instruction manuals using pictograms.
abstract: Instruction manuals provide important messages about the proper use of a product. They should communicate in such a way that they facilitate users' searches for specific information. Despite the increasing research interest in visual search, there is a lack of empirical knowledge concerning the role of pictograms in search performance during the browsing of a manual's pages. This study investigates how the inclusion of pictograms improves the search for the target information. Furthermore, it examines whether this search process is influenced by the visual similarity between the pictograms and the searched for information. On the basis of eye-tracking measurements, as objective indicators of the participants' visual attention, it was found that pictograms can be a useful element of search strategy. Another interesting finding was that boldface highlighting is a more effective method for improving user experience in information seeking, rather than the similarity between the pictorial and adjacent textual information. Implications for designing effective user manuals are discussed. Practitioner Summary: Users often view instruction manuals with the aim of finding specific information. We used eye-tracking technology to examine different manual pages in order to improve the user's visual search for target information. The results indicate that the use of pictograms and bold highlighting of relevant information facilitate the search process.
authors.affiliation: a Faculty of Graphic Arts, Department of Graphic Design and Image Information , University of Zagreb , Zagreb , Croatia.
authors.forename: Dorotea
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kovačević
authors.affiliation: a Faculty of Graphic Arts, Department of Graphic Design and Image Information , University of Zagreb , Zagreb , Croatia.
authors.forename: Maja
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brozović
authors.affiliation: b Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering, Department of Textiles, Graphic Arts and Design, Chair of Information and Graphic Arts Technology , University of Ljubljana , Ljubljana , Slovenia.
authors.forename: Klementina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Možina
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D001296:Audiovisual Aids; D003071:Cognition; D053483:Eye Movement Measurements; D005133:Eye Movements; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008370:Manuals as Topic; D014796:Visual Perception; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Consumer ergonomics; attention and vigilance; eye-tracking; manuals and instructions; perception