a b s t r a c tWe discuss the impact of cultural differences on usability evaluations that are based on the thinkingaloud method (TA). The term 'cultural differences' helps distinguish differences in the perception and thinking of Westerners (people from Western Europe and US citizens with European origins) and Easterners (people from China and the countries heavily influenced by its culture). We illustrate the impact of cultural cognition on four central elements of TA: (1) instructions and tasks, (2) the user's verbalizations, (3) the evaluator's reading of the user, and (4) the overall relationship between user and evaluator. In conclusion, we point to the importance of matching the task presentation to users' cultural background, the different effects of thinking aloud on task performance between Easterners and Westerners, the differences in nonverbal behaviour that affect usability problem detection, and, finally, the complexity of the overall relationship between a user and an evaluator with different cultural backgrounds.

Whereas the concept of usability is predominantly defined analytically, people relate to systems through personal usability constructs. Based on 48 repertory-grid interviews, this study investigates how such personal constructs are affected by two factors crucial to the international development and uptake of systems: nationality (Chinese, Danish, or Indian) and stakeholder group (developer or user). We find no significant overall difference across nationalities, but further analyses suggest that conventional usability aspects such as ease of use and simplicity are prominent for Chinese and Danish but not Indian participants and that a distinction between work and leisure-related communication is central to Chinese and Indian but not Danish participants. For stakeholder groups, we find a significant overall difference between developers and users. Unlike developers, users associate ease of use with leisure and, conversely, difficulty in use with work-relatedness. Further, users perceive usefulness as related to frustration and separate from ease of use, whereas developers construe usefulness, fun, and ease of use as related. In construing usability, participants make use of several constructs that are not part of prevailing usability definitions, including usefulness, fun, and security.

Abstract. Whereas research on usability predominantly employs universal definitions of the aspects that comprise usability, people experience their use of information systems through personal constructs. Based on 48 repertory-grid interviews, this study investigates how such personal constructs are affected by two factors crucial to the international development and uptake of information systems: cultural background (Chinese, Danish, or Indian) and stakeholder group (developer or user). We find that for the user group frustrating and useful systems are experienced similarly, whereas for the developers frustrating systems are experienced similarly to easy-to-use systems. Looking at the most characteristic construct for each participant we find that Chinese participants use constructs related to security, task types, training, and system issues, whereas Danish and to some extent Indian participants make more use of constructs traditionally associated with usability (e.g., easy-to-use, intuitive, and liked). Further analysis of the data is ongoing.

Adolescent girls especially in rural parts of India are shrouded in myth, superstition and various restrictions since the time they attain menarche. These misconceptions and ignorance lead to severe health consequences. In this paper we describe evaluation of a digital game -'Help Pinky' designed to bridge information gaps and alleviate taboos related to menstruation and puberty in adolescent girls in rural Assam. 'Help Pinky' dwells on the paradigm of game based learning and seeks support of peers for achieving success in the game. The evaluation study was conducted in two parts -a pilot followed by the final test. The game was found effective in triggering discussions about stigmatized topics related to puberty. We discuss through our study and literature how learning through games seeking local community support could be a step towards dissolving the existent silence that prevails around these topics, thereby leading to free discussions and better health in the long run.

The cultural diversity of users of technology challenges our methods for usability evaluation. In this paper we report on a multi-site, cross-cultural grounded theory field study of think aloud testing in seven companies in three countries (Denmark, China and India). The theoretical model that emerges from the data suggests that the production of a usability problem list is multi-causal and subject to cultural variations. Even the way usability problems are experienced by test participants may be different. In the discussion we outline practical guidelines for a test that is more sensitive towards cultural usability.