The proximity factor: impact of distance on co-located collaboration

ABSTRACT

Groups collaborating around a large wall display can do so in a variety of arrangements, positioning themselves at different distances from the display and from each other. We examined the impact of proximity on the effectiveness and enjoyment of co-located collaboration. Our results revealed collaborative benefits when participants were positioned close together, and interaction with the display was felt to be more effective when participants were close to the display. However, clear tradeoffs were evident for these configurations. When at a distance to the display, the choice of direct versus indirect interaction revealed that interactions were easier when using direct input but the effectiveness of the collaboration was compromised.

REFERENCES

• 1: Harry Brignull , Shahram Izadi , Geraldine Fitzpatrick , Yvonne Rogers , Tom Rodden, The introduction of a shared interactive surface into a communal space, Proceedings of the 2004 ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work, November 06-10, 2004, Chicago, Illinois, USA [doi>10.1145/1031607.1031616]
• 2: Duncan Cavens , Florian Vogt , Sidney Fels , Michael Meitner, Interacting with the big screen: pointers to ponder, CHI '02 extended abstracts on Human factors in computing systems, April 20-25, 2002, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA [doi>10.1145/506443.506542]
• 3: Elizabeth F. Churchill , Les Nelson , Laurent Denoue , Jonathan Helfman , Paul Murphy, Sharing multimedia content with interactive public displays: a case study, Proceedings of the 2004 conference on Designing interactive systems: processes, practices, methods, and techniques, August 01-04, 2004, Cambridge, MA, USA [doi>10.1145/1013115.1013119]
• 4: Adam Fass , Jodi Forlizzi , Randy Pausch, MessyDesk and MessyBoard: two designs inspired by the goal of improving human memory, Proceedings of the conference on Designing interactive systems: processes, practices, methods, and techniques, June 25-28, 2002, London, England [doi>10.1145/778712.778754]
• 5: Darren Gergle , Robert E. Kraut , Susan R. Fussell, Action as language in a shared visual space, Proceedings of the 2004 ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work, November 06-10, 2004, Chicago, Illinois, USA [doi>10.1145/1031607.1031687]
• 6: Evan D. Graham , Christine L. MacKenzie, Physical versus virtual pointing, Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems: common ground, p.292-299, April 13-18, 1996, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada [doi>10.1145/238386.238532]
• 7: Saul Greenberg , Michael Rounding, The notification collage: posting information to public and personal displays, Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems, p.514-521, March 2001, Seattle, Washington, United States [doi>10.1145/365024.365339]
• 8: Elaine M. Huang , Daniel M. Russell , Alison E. Sue, IM here: public instant messaging on large, shared displays for workgroup interactions, Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems, p.279-286, April 24-29, 2004, Vienna, Austria [doi>10.1145/985692.985728]
• 9: Inkpen, K.M., Hawkey, K., Kellar, M., Mandryk, R.L., Parker, K., Reilly, D., Scott, S.D. and Whalen, T., Display Factors Influencing Co-Located Collaboration. In Proceedings of International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction (HCII '05), (Las Vegas, Nevada, 2005).
• 10: Brad Johanson , Armando Fox , Terry Winograd, The Interactive Workspaces Project: Experiences with Ubiquitous Computing Rooms, IEEE Pervasive Computing, v.1 n.2, p.67-74, April 2002 [doi>10.1109/MPRV.2002.1012339]
• 11: Scott R. Klemmer , Mark W. Newman , Ryan Farrell , Mark Bilezikjian , James A. Landay, The designers' outpost: a tangible interface for collaborative web site, Proceedings of the 14th annual ACM symposium on User interface software and technology, November 11-14, 2001, Orlando, Florida [doi>10.1145/502348.502350]
• 12: Lund, A.M. The Influence of Video Image Size and Resolution on Viewing-Distance Preferences. Soc. of Motion Picture and Television Engineers Journal, 102. 406--415.
• 13: Brad A. Myers , Rishi Bhatnagar , Jeffrey Nichols , Choon Hong Peck , Dave Kong , Robert Miller , A. Chris Long, Interacting at a distance: measuring the performance of laser pointers and other devices, Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems: Changing our world, changing ourselves, April 20-25, 2002, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA [doi>10.1145/503376.503383]
• 14: Elizabeth D. Mynatt , Takeo Igarashi , W. Keith Edwards , Anthony LaMarca, Flatland: new dimensions in office whiteboards, Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems: the CHI is the limit, p.346-353, May 15-20, 1999, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States [doi>10.1145/302979.303108]
• 15: Nova, N. Socio-Cognitive Functions of Space in Collaborative Settings. CRAFT Research Report. Available at http://craftsrv1.epfl.ch/MT/research/archives/ CRAFT_report1.pdf, (retrieved 01/30/05), 2003.
• 16: Oh, J. and Stuerzlinger, W., Laser Pointers as Collaborative Pointing Devices. In Proceedings of Graphics Interface (GI '02), (Calgary, Alberta, 2002), 141--149.
• 17: Park, K., Renambot, L., Leigh, J. and Johnson, A. The Impact of Display-Rich Environments for Enhancing Task Parallelism and Group Awareness in Advanced Collaborative Environments. Workshop on Advanced Collaboration Environments, Seattle, WA, 2003.
• 18: Elin Rønby Pedersen , Kim McCall , Thomas P. Moran , Frank G. Halasz, Tivoli: an electronic whiteboard for informal workgroup meetings, Proceedings of the INTERCHI '93 conference on Human factors in computing systems, p.391-398, May 1993, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
• 19: Rogers, Y. and Lindley, S. Collaborating around Vertical and Horizontal Displays: Which Way Is Best? Interacting with Computers, 16. 1133--1152.
• 20: Russell, D.M. Large Interactive Public Displays: Use Patterns, Support Patterns, Community Patterns. Workshop on Public, Community and Situated Displays, ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW '02), New Orleans, Louisiana, 2002.
• 21: Scott, S.D., Grant, K.D. and Mandryk, R.L., System Guidelines for Co-Located, Collaborative Work on a Tabletop Display. In Proceedings of European Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (ECSCW '03), (Helsinki, Finland, 2003), 159--178.
• 22: Scott, S.D., Mandryk, R.L. and Inkpen, K.M. Understanding Children's Collaborative Interactions in Shared Environments. J. of Computer Assisted Learning, 19 (2). 220--228.
• 23: Mark Stefik , Gregg Foster , Daniel G. Bobrow , Kenneth Kahn , Stan Lanning , Lucy Suchman, Beyond the chalkboard: computer support for collaboration and problem solving in meetings, Communications of the ACM, v.30 n.1, p.32-47, Jan. 1987 [doi>10.1145/7885.7887]
• 24: Norbert A. Streitz , Jörg Geißler , Jörg M. Haake , Jeroen Hol, DOLPHIN: integrated meeting support across local and remote desktop environments and LiveBoards, Proceedings of the 1994 ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work, p.345-358, October 22-26, 1994, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States [doi>10.1145/192844.193044]
• 25: Norbert A. Streitz , Jörg Geißler , Torsten Holmer , Shin'ichi Konomi , Christian Müller-Tomfelde , Wolfgang Reischl , Petra Rexroth , Peter Seitz , Ralf Steinmetz, i-LAND: an interactive landscape for creativity and innovation, Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems: the CHI is the limit, p.120-127, May 15-20, 1999, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States [doi>10.1145/302979.303010]
• 26: Desney S. Tan , Mary Czerwinski, Information voyeurism: social impact of physically large displays on information privacy, CHI '03 extended abstracts on Human factors in computing systems, April 05-10, 2003, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, USA [doi>10.1145/765891.765967]
• 27: Desney S. Tan , Darren Gergle , Peter Scupelli , Randy Pausch, With similar visual angles, larger displays improve spatial performance, Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems, April 05-10, 2003, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, USA [doi>10.1145/642611.642650]
• 28: John C. Tang, Findings from observational studies of collaborative work, International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, v.34 n.2, p.143-160, Feb. 1991 [doi>10.1016/0020-7373(91)90039-A]
• 29: Daniel Vogel , Ravin Balakrishnan, Interactive public ambient displays: transitioning from implicit to explicit, public to personal, interaction with multiple users, Proceedings of the 17th annual ACM symposium on User interface software and technology, October 24-27, 2004, Santa Fe, NM, USA [doi>10.1145/1029632.1029656]
• 30: Whalen, T., Ha, V., Inkpen, K.M., Mandryk, R.L., Scott, S.D. and Hancock, M.S. Direct Intentions: The Effects of Input Devices on Collaboration around a Tabletop Display., Dalhousie University, 2004.
• 31: Whitelock, D. and Scanlon, E., Measuring the Meaning Conveyed by a Glance or a Gesture in a Computer Supported Collaborative Learning Environment. In Proceedings of Computer Support for Collaborative Learning (CSCL'97), (Toronto, Ontario, 1997), 308--313.

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.3 Group and Organization Interfaces
          Subjects: Computer-supported cooperative work

General Terms:
Experimentation, Human Factors, Performance

Keywords:
co-located collaboration, direct input, indirect input, large displays, proximity, single-display groupware (SDG), wall display