This will not be a large post, I am still working out the details…. But I have been thinking about the development of a language of HCI. I realize that it is important to have a controlled vocabulary that we can use to communicate HCI concepts and theories across disciplines. It is also important to have a classification scheme that represents the context of HCI concepts and theories. I am wondering if it would be useful to have something similar to the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is an American handbook for mental health professionals that lists different categories of mental disorder and the criteria for diagnosing them, according to the publishing organization the American Psychiatric Association – from Wikipedia) that would list all the theories and controlled vocabulary found in the field of HCI??? This paper/manual/book wouldn’t be formatted exactly like the DSM-IV, I envision more of an encyclopedia format then a diagnostic manual.
I have been reading research about classification schemes and controlled vocabulary.
That is where this is coming from…
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I agree, Tim, a good starting point to formulating a langauge might be to work out the elements of its vocabulary first.
One thing though – DSM, and categorizers like it, can be a real double-edged sword sometimes. Like all tools, they shape and direct thought as they organize it. So, provisions would have to be made in such an approach to “keep things loose”.
That said, I think this is a very promising sort of mechanistic approach to getting the ball rolling.