Context aware interruptions: existing research and required research

Abstract

Companies in various fields are developing information systems that are supposed to show information in a context sensitive manner. This involves modifying user interfaces based on the current activity and location of the user. The research that exists for context aware, task aware, and location aware systems come mostly from research in the office environment and using stationary work computers using standard mouse and keyboard-operated systems. Other environments, such as manufacturing environments, have not received the same research attention, and therefore research is required to see whether existing theories and frameworks apply to the manufacturing domain. Adding to this, context aware systems are now being created for new classes of devices such as mobile and wearable devices, to be used in multiple domains. All this requires an investigation and validation of older research, and shows how the research of the basic human factors surrounding new devices and domains has fallen behind the development of the devices themselves. This paper examines shortly how recent changes advances in technology affect what is required from the field of interruption research, as well as what is needed to support other domains than the office environment.