Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Using Insights from Cognitive Neuroscience to Investigate the Effects of Event-Driven Process Chains on Process Model Comprehension

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Business Process Management Workshops (BPM 2017)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing ((LNBIP,volume 308))

Included in the following conference series:

Abstract

Business process models have been adopted by enterprises for more than a decade. Especially for domain experts, the comprehension of process models constitutes a challenging task that needs to be mastered when creating or reading these models. This paper presents the results we obtained from an eye tracking experiment on process model comprehension. In detail, individuals with either no or advanced expertise in process modeling were confronted with models expressed in terms of Event-driven Process Chains (EPCs), reflecting different levels of difficulty. The first results of this experiment confirm recent findings from one of our previous experiments on the reading and comprehension of process models. On one hand, independent from their level of expertise, all individuals face similar patterns, when being confronted with process models exceeding a certain level of difficulty. On the other, it appears that process models expressed in terms of EPCs are perceived differently compared to process models specified in the Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN). In the end, their generalization needs to be confirmed by additional empirical experiments. The presented experiment continues a series of experiments that aim to unravel the factors fostering the comprehension of business process models by using methods and theories stemming from the field of cognitive neuroscience and psychology.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    Material downloadable from: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/th6wc0761ajlxcw/AABs_LXE8mh-ufzSp95lT66za?dl=0.

  2. 2.

    http://www.smivision.com/en/gaze-and-eye-tracking-systems/products/iview-x-hi-speed.html.

  3. 3.

    Sample images downloadable from: www.dropbox.com/sh/th6wc0761ajlxcw/AABs_LXE8mh-ufzSp95lT66za?dl=0.

References

  1. Ottensooser, A., Fekete, A., Reijers, H.A., Mendling, J., Meicstas, C.: Making sense of business process descriptions: an experimental comparison of graphical and textual notations. J. Syst. Softw. 85, 596–606 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. van der Aalst, W.M.P.: Formalization and verification of event-driven process chains. Inf. Soft Tech. 41(10), 639–650 (1999)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. OMG: Business Process Management & Notation 2.0 (2017). www.bpmn.org. Accessed 27 Feb 2017

  4. Schultheiss, L.A., Heiliger, E.: Techniques of flow-charting. In: Proceedings of 1963 Clinic on Library Applications of Data Processing, pp. 62–78 (1963)

    Google Scholar 

  5. Johansson, L.O., Wärja, M., Carlsson, S.: An evaluation of business process model techniques, using Moodys quality criterion for a good diagram. In: CEUR Workshop Proceedings, vol. 963 (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Zimoch, M., Pryss, R., Probst, T., Schlee, W., Reichert, M.: Cognitive insights into business process model comprehension: preliminary results for experienced and inexperienced individuals. In: Reinhartz-Berger, I., Gulden, J., Nurcan, S., Guédria, W., Bera, P. (eds.) BPMDS/EMMSAD -2017. LNBIP, vol. 287, pp. 137–152. Springer, Cham (2017). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59466-8_9

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  7. Schwarz, N.: Emotion, cognition, and decision making, pp. 433–440 (2000)

    Google Scholar 

  8. Zugal, S., Pinggera, J., Weber, B.: Assessing process models with cognitive psychology. In: EMISA, vol. 190, pp. 177–182 (2011)

    Google Scholar 

  9. Figl, K., Recker, J.: Exploring cognitive style and task-specific preferences for process representations. Requir. Eng. 21(1), 63–85 (2014)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Recker, J., Reijers, H.A., van de Wouw, S.G.: Process model comprehension: the effects of cognitive abilities. Learn. Style Strategy 34, 199–222 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  11. Prokasy, W.: Electrodermal Activity in Psychological Research. Elsevier, Amsterdam (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  12. Camm, A.J., et al.: Heart rate variability: standards of measurement. Physiol. Interpretation Clin. Use 93, 1043–1065 (1996)

    Google Scholar 

  13. Sweller, J., Ayres, P., Kalyuga, S.: Cognitive Load Theory. Springer, New York (2011)

    Book  Google Scholar 

  14. Trope, Y., Liberman, N.: Construal-level theory of psychological distance. Psychol. Rev. 117, 440–463 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Cook, T.D.: Quasi-Experimental Design. Wiley, Hoboken (2015)

    Book  Google Scholar 

  16. Gegenfurtner, A., et al.: Expertise differences in the comprehension of visualizations: a meta-analysis of eye-tracking research in professional domains. Educ. Psychol. Rev. 23(4), 523–552 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Salvucci, D.D., Goldberg, J.H.: Identifying fixations and saccades in eye-tracking protocols. In: Proceedings of 2000 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research & Application, pp. 71–78 (2000)

    Google Scholar 

  18. Raney, G.E., Campbell, S.J., Bovee, J.C.: Using eye movements to evaluate the cognitive processes involved in text comprehension. J. Vis. Exp. 10(83), e50780 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  19. Wohlin, C., Runeson, P., Höst, M., Ohlsson, M.C., Regnell, B., Wesslen, A.: Experimentation in Software Engineering - An Introduction. Kluwer, Norwell (2000)

    Book  MATH  Google Scholar 

  20. SMI: iView X Hi-Speed (2016). http://www.smivision.com/en/gaze-and-eye-tracking-systems/products/iview-x-hi-speed.html. Accessed 27 Feb 2017

  21. Hogg, R.V., Tanis, E.A.: Probability and Statistical Inference. Macmillan, New York (1977)

    MATH  Google Scholar 

  22. Sirkin, M.: Statistics for the Social Sciences, vol. 3. Sage, Thousand Oaks (2005)

    MATH  Google Scholar 

  23. Zimoch, M., Pryss, R., Schobel, J., Reichert, M.: Eye tracking experiments on process model comprehension: lessons learned. In: Reinhartz-Berger, I., Gulden, J., Nurcan, S., Guédria, W., Bera, P. (eds.) BPMDS/EMMSAD -2017. LNBIP, vol. 287, pp. 153–168. Springer, Cham (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59466-8_10

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  24. Kiepuszewski, B., ter Hofstede, A.H.M., Bussler, C.J.: On structured workflow modelling. In: Wangler, B., Bergman, L. (eds.) CAiSE 2000. LNCS, vol. 1789, pp. 431–445. Springer, Heidelberg (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-45140-4_29

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  25. Melcher, J., Mendling, J., Reijers, H.A., Seese, D.: On measuring the understandability of process models. In: Rinderle-Ma, S., Sadiq, S., Leymann, F. (eds.) BPM 2009. LNBIP, vol. 43, pp. 465–476. Springer, Heidelberg (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-12186-9_44

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  26. Mendling, J., Reijers, H.A., Cardoso, J.: What makes process models understandable? In: Alonso, G., Dadam, P., Rosemann, M. (eds.) BPM 2007. LNCS, vol. 4714, pp. 48–63. Springer, Heidelberg (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-75183-0_4

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  27. Mendling, J., Strembeck, M., Recker, J.: Factors of process model comprehension- findings from a series of experiments. Decis. Support Syst. 53(1), 195–206 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Figl, K.: Comprehension of procedural visual business process models-a literature review. Bus. Inf. Syst. Eng. 59, 41–67 (2017)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Moody, D.L.: Cognitive load effects on end user understanding of conceptual models: an experimental analysis. In: Benczúr, A., Demetrovics, J., Gottlob, G. (eds.) ADBIS 2004. LNCS, vol. 3255, pp. 129–143. Springer, Heidelberg (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-30204-9_9

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  30. Figl, K., Laue, R.: Cognitive complexity in business process modeling. In: Mouratidis, H., Rolland, C. (eds.) CAiSE 2011. LNCS, vol. 6741, pp. 452–466. Springer, Heidelberg (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-21640-4_34

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  31. Moody, D.: The “Physics” of notations: toward a scientific basis for constructing visual notations in software engineering. Trans. Softw Eng. 35(6), 756–779 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. van der Linden, D., Zamansky, A., Hadar, I.: How cognitively effective is a visual notation? On the inherent difficulty of operationalizing the physics of notations. In: Schmidt, R., Guédria, W., Bider, I., Guerreiro, S. (eds.) BPMDS/EMMSAD -2016. LNBIP, vol. 248, pp. 448–462. Springer, Cham (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39429-9_28

    Google Scholar 

  33. Dobesova, Z., Malcik, M.: Workflow diagrams and pupil dilatation in eye tracking testing. In: Proceedings of 13th International Conference on Emerging eLearning Techniques & Applications, pp. 59–64 (2015)

    Google Scholar 

  34. Hogrebe, F., Gehrke, N., Nüttgens, M.: Eye tracking experiments in business process modeling: agenda setting and proof of concept. In: Proceedings of 4th International Workshop on Enterprise Modelling and Information Systems Architectures, pp. 183–188 (2011)

    Google Scholar 

  35. Petrusel, R., Mendling, J.: Eye-tracking the factors of process model comprehension tasks. In: Salinesi, C., Norrie, M.C., Pastor, Ó. (eds.) CAiSE 2013. LNCS, vol. 7908, pp. 224–239. Springer, Heidelberg (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-38709-8_15

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  36. Gabryelczyk, R., Jurczuk, A.: The diagnosis of information potential of selected business process modelling notations. Inf. Syst. Manag. 4, 26–38 (2015)

    Google Scholar 

  37. Recker, J.C., Dreiling, A.: The effects of content presentation format and user characteristics on novice developers understanding of process models. Commun. Assoc. Inf. Syst. 28, 65–84 (2011)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Databases and Information Systems, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany

    Michael Zimoch, Tim Mohring, Rüdiger Pryss & Manfred Reichert

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Regensburg University, Regensburg, Germany

    Thomas Probst & Winfried Schlee

Authors
  1. Michael Zimoch
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Tim Mohring
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Rüdiger Pryss
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Thomas Probst
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Winfried Schlee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Manfred Reichert
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael Zimoch .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Service and Information System Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain

    Ernest Teniente

  2. Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Matthias Weidlich

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG

About this paper

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this paper

Zimoch, M., Mohring, T., Pryss, R., Probst, T., Schlee, W., Reichert, M. (2018). Using Insights from Cognitive Neuroscience to Investigate the Effects of Event-Driven Process Chains on Process Model Comprehension. In: Teniente, E., Weidlich, M. (eds) Business Process Management Workshops. BPM 2017. Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, vol 308. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74030-0_35

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74030-0_35

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-74029-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-74030-0

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation