Improving the human factors aspect of database interactions

The widespread dissemination of computer and information systems to nontechnically trained individuals requires a new approach to the design and development of database interfaces. This paper provides the motivational background for controlled psychological experimentation in exploring the person/machine interface. Frameworks for the reductionist approach are given, research methods discussed, research issues presented, and a small experiment is offered as an example of what can be accomplished. This experiment is a comparison of natural and artificial language query facilities. Although subjects posed approximately equal numbers of valid queries with either facility, natural language users made significantly more invalid queries which could not be answered from the database that was described.