Patterns of Interaction:
a Pattern Language for CSCW
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Pattern: Public artefact
Essence of the Pattern: This pattern is concerned with the use of a public artefact (for example, a large display monitor, notice board) which serves as a shared object which provides a group of workers with some form of overall perspective on their activity. This promotes collaboration of various kinds allowing actors to visualise how their work fits into an overall perspective, to assist and monitor in one another's work. In this way it provides some redundancy in the system. This pattern has been described as a constituent part of multiple representations of information.
Design For Dependability
Where Used? This pattern has been documented in two settings so far. The focus is on a single, overall public representation of the group activity. This may offer a group perspective and afford information for individuals on how their work fits with the group. This has been found to promote teamwork and monitoring for small collocated groups in control room settings.
This pattern is illustrated with vignettes from the following field work:
- Air Traffic Control. How air traffic controllers and other personnel collaboratively make use of the public display containing the paper flight strips in order to manage the flights through a sector of air space.
- Ambulance Control. How ambulance controllers collaboratively make use of two public displays in order to make decisions on which resource to allocate to an incoming call and to manage the overall load on the system.
Design implications? In a situation, particularly where a complex task is broken down into tightly coupled component parts the use of a public artefact demonstrating the overall picture (and making available each part) can be useful in promoting dependability in the system. The public persistence of the artefact means that it is always available as a resource and it should promote teamwork as workers collaborate an parts on the activity that are shown to be connected, and provides an opportunity to oversee and monitor one another's work. Similar patterns may be found or may be more useful for representing less complex situations, e.g. a call waiting list in a bank call centre, but serve similar functions, promote efficient working (i.e. getting the team to up their call rate).
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