Abstract
Human activity modeling is a systematic approach to organizing and representing the contextual aspects of tool use that is both well-grounded in an accepted theoretical framework and embedded within a proven design method. Activity theory provides the vocabulary and conceptual framework for understanding the human use of tools and other artifacts. Usage-centered design provides the methodological scaffolding for applying activity theory in practice. In this chapter, activity theory and usage-centered design are outlined and the connections between the two are highlighted. Simple extensions to the models of usage-centered design are introduced that together succinctly model the salient and most essential features of the activities within which tool use is embedded. Although not intended as a tutorial, examples of Activity Maps, Activity Profiles, and Participation Maps are provided.
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Constantine, L.L. (2009). Human Activity Modeling: Toward A Pragmatic Integration of Activity Theory and Usage-Centered Design. In: Seffah, A., Vanderdonckt, J., Desmarais, M.C. (eds) Human-Centered Software Engineering. Human-Computer Interaction Series. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84800-907-3_3
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