I became interested in this topic when I was on leave at the University of Rome and Siemens in Europe during the 1994-95 academic year. I have been collaborating with my Italian colleagues on research papers (see below) since then. This last year, I succeeded in getting funding for this research focus from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, with the promise of more funding to come in 1998. When I came back from Europe, I gave a seminar on this topic during the Fall of 1996 which helped create interest here among students. I have now two M.S. in HCI students working with me on the cultural usability research.

The objective of the research program is to explore and gain an understanding of how cultural influences lead to variations in peoples' behaviors and practices, and how such variations should be considered in designing interactions with computing artifacts.

With the emergence of user-centered design and more recent HCI initiatives in the development of interaction design , the Pandora's box of "culture" is moving from the borders of HCI to the forefront. It is becoming increasingly clear that the area of cultural computing should be addressed seriously by the field of Computing. The majority of all software is marketed and used outside the US, generally in countries other than where it is developed and produced. Creating or retrofitting software for other countries requires attention to technical detail that goes beyond mere translation. It also requires an understanding of the unique software design and adaptation methods usually lumped under the term, Internationalization.

In our research, we are exploring cross-cultural design constraints and how these would impact interface design methodology and content. This was the topic of the paper given at the CQS'97 conference in Rome, Itlay. We consider the impact of such cross cultural differences as format, symbols/icons, color, flow, text, script, habits, communication behavior, locus of control, time perception, etc. on design and presentation.

We are currently exploring the cross-cultural differences as they relate to the topics below, then consider the implications of identified differences for designing HCI:

01. Non-verbal behavior/communication, gesture/facial interactions
02. Thought patterns, recall, connotation and categorization
03. Color, color naming, color preference
04. Geometry, depth perception, style
05. Icons, pictures, symbols
06. Visualization/verbalization
07. Individual differences
08. Language/scripts/writing systems/reading habits
09. National formats/standards
10. Learning/information search

Culturability: The Merging of Culture and Usability
Reference Paper by Barber and Badre, 1998

The Cultural Context of Web Genres: Content vs. Style
Reference paper by Badre and Laskowski, 2001

What follows are some of the fruits of this work:

A. Badre "Usability and the New Media,"
CQS'98 conference proceedings, Rome, Italy, April, 1997

W. Barber and A. Badre, "Culturability: The Merging of Culture and Usability",
Proceedings of the 4TH CONFERENCE ON HUMAN FACTORS AND THE WEB, June, 1998

A. Badre and S. Laskowski, "The Cultural Context of Web Genres: Content vs. Style",
submitted to Human Factors and the Web, 2001