Understanding of symbols in global multi-cultural settings
Lopez Garcia, Angel Alberto (2021)
2021
Master's Programme in Human-Technology Interaction
Informaatioteknologian ja viestinnän tiedekunta - Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences
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Hyväksymispäivämäärä
2021-07-29
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202107276374
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202107276374
Tiivistelmä
Symbols are commonly used for visual communication, as is evident in tourism, media, technology, and other areas with distinct user groups. Despite their popularity and simplicity, symbols can be easily misunderstood due to different conventions in different cultures. Cultural differences often represent a major challenge when designing for multicultural audiences. In this thesis, a quantitative research was conducted to investigate the influence of cultural differences in people’s attitudes towards custom symbols used in technical documentation. In addition, the research intends to explore the potential of using animations as an alternative to custom graphic symbols. This thesis was made in collaboration with KONE and thus the research focuses on custom symbols and animations used in the company’s learning and maintenance guides.
For this study, an online survey was conducted with 23 participants from Finland, China, and India. The objectives of this study were to compare participants’ preferences on symbol design and analyse their impressions on animations used in technical documentation. The research findings were used to support the re-designing work of custom symbols and animations followed by an expert evaluation. Overall, the results revealed that cultural differences had no major influence on attitudes towards custom symbols. However, the research was done with participants who had a significant work experience, thus a strong familiarity with symbols used in industry. The results also confirmed the effectiveness of animations in instructional guidance and suggested that using animations can be highly beneficial, especially among Indian users.
For this study, an online survey was conducted with 23 participants from Finland, China, and India. The objectives of this study were to compare participants’ preferences on symbol design and analyse their impressions on animations used in technical documentation. The research findings were used to support the re-designing work of custom symbols and animations followed by an expert evaluation. Overall, the results revealed that cultural differences had no major influence on attitudes towards custom symbols. However, the research was done with participants who had a significant work experience, thus a strong familiarity with symbols used in industry. The results also confirmed the effectiveness of animations in instructional guidance and suggested that using animations can be highly beneficial, especially among Indian users.