Eliciting user-sourced interaction mappings for body-based interfaces

Thanks to technological advancements, whole-body natural user interfaces are becoming increasingly common in modern homes and public spaces. However, because whole-body natural user interfaces lack obvious affordances, users can be unsure how to control the interface. In this thesis, I report the findings of a study of novice and expert users mock controlling a balance-based whole-body natural user interface during a Think Aloud task. I compare the strategies demonstrated by participants while controlling the whole-body natural user interfaces and match them with known categories of interaction mappings (metaphoric, isomorphic, and conventional). My findings indicate that designing whole-body natural user interfaces around conventions is useful for novice users, while expert users are more likely to expect metaphors.