David LeBlanc (2009)

Cross-Cultural Variation in Multimedia Presentation Preferences (2009)

Work in the study of cross-cultural variation has traditionally focused on identifying consistent , fundamental dimensions (i.e. Variables) of variation between major cultural groups. Work by researchers such as Hofstede (1997), Hall (1990) and Trompenaars (1993, 1998) has focused on identifying characteristics of cultural variation across national groups and then hypothesized how this variation could affect a particular group's preferences and interactions both within the group and across cultural boundaries. The most extensive study of this type has been done by Hofstede, the results of which led him to posit five distinct variables of cultural variation: power distance, collectivism, versus individualism, femininity versus masculinity, uncertainty avoidance and long-term versus short-term  orientation. Other researchers have introduced different and/or additional variables (e.g. Hall posits a difference in him people organize their interactions with respect to time, monochronic versus polychronic), but Hofstede's work is best supported by empirical evidence and most popular with researchers applying this work to Information Technology (IT) studies (primarily due to its empirical base, its straight-forward description of variables and its initial focus on IT workers as its subjects).

Hofstede's theory relates to how people view the world and prefer to have their society organized. For example, the variable power distance measures the extent to which members of a cultural group expect and accept unequal power distribution with that culture. Cultures with a high power distance tend to have centralized political power and exhibit tall hierarchies in organizations with large differences in salary and status while cultures with low power distance  tend to view subordinates and supervisors as closer together and more interchangeable, with flatter hierarchies in organizations and less difference in salaries and status. The theory is often then related to how information should be presented to people within a cultural group, with (e.g.) members of a high power distance culture preferring to have new information supported by references to authority while members of a low power distance culture prefer to have new information supported by detailed explanations and supporting material. Hofstede's theories of cultural variation have been applied to the design of multimedia material by Aaron Marcus & Emilie W. Gould (2000). In this work, the authors discuss each of Hofstede's five variables and hypothesize how each should affect information interface design for a specific culture. In other words, how to design an effective and appealing multimedia interface for a specific cultural group based upon that group's cultural characteristics. To return to the example of power distance, the authors posit that this cultural characteristic should influence interface design in the following ways:

●Access to information: highly (high PD) vs. Less-highly (low PD) structured.

●Hierarchies in mental models: tall vs. Shallow.

●Emphasis on the social and moral order (e.g. Nationalism or religion) and its

symbols: significant/frequent vs. minor/infrequent use.

●Focus on expertise, authority, experts, certifications, official stamps, or logos:

strong vs. weak.

●Prominence given to leaders vs. citizens, customers, or employees.

Importance of security and restrictions or barriers to access: explicit, enforced,

frequent restrictions on users vs.. transparent, integrated, implicit freedom to

roam.

●Social roles used to organize information (e.g., a managers' section obvious to all

but sealed off from non-managers): frequent vs. Infrequent

Such guidelines for interface design are invaluable, if they are accurate. However,

the guidelines are to this day still largely hypotheses, albeit by a highly regarded interface

designer. It would be highly recommended that these hypotheses were backed up by

experimental testing  demonstrating their validity.

It is the purpose of this presentation to demonstrate how these hypotheses are being tested by the presenter, with examples taken from past and on-going experimentation. Discussion will focus on experimental design, testing techniques and advances (by Hofstede) to cultural classification that are nation-independent.

David LeBlanc is a professor in the Department of Computer Sciences at UPEI.  He has a background in artificial intelligence, cognitive science and theoretical linguistics, with degrees in computer science and linguistics.  His current research focuses on cross-cultural variation in interface design—work he is eager to expand to the study of variation in player preferences within video games.  This work involves experimental usability testing.