The Impact of Icons & Visual Effects on Learning Computer Databases
David H. Merwin / Brian P. Dyre / Darryl G. Humphrey / John Grimes / John F. Larish

Abstract: Improvements in computer graphics systems have made icons and visual effects available for use in designing database interfaces. However, little research has been reported about the impact of icons and visual effects on performance measures such as item selection time and recall of the databases. The present study examined the effect of icons and visual effects on item selection time and recall of a hierarchical database structure. Information in the database was represented by either a text label or a combined icon-text label. In addition, three types of visual effects during transition between menu screens were examined: instantaneous change, zoom open from the previous screen, and dissolve into the next screen. Both the item representation and screen transition manipulations were examined between subjects. Subjects were required to reach goals by selecting items from the various menus in the database. Processing time per menu screen and recall of the database were measured for each subject. Both the type of representation (icon-text vs. text alone) and the type of transition between menus (zoom, instantaneous change or dissolve) were found to affect subjects' ability to recall the structure of the database. Furthermore, no similar effects on item selection time were found for either manipulation. These results suggest that icons and visual effects can facilitate recall of hierarchical databases without increasing traversal time. In addition, the results suggest that indiscriminate use of some visual effects (dissolve) can impair learning of computer databases.

Keywords: Databases; Empirical studies; Hypermedia/Information systems; Icons; Screen output; Visual effects

Originally published: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 34th Annual Meeting, 1990, pp. 424-428

Republished: G. Perlman, G. K. Green, & M. S. Wogalter (Eds.) Human Factors Perspectives on Human-Computer Interaction: Selections from Proceedings of Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meetings, 1983-1994, Santa Monica, CA: HFES, 1995, pp. 215-219.