Peripheral interaction: facilitating interaction with secondary tasks

Abstract

Working with digital devices, we often do not focus on one task but switch back and forth between several tasks. Usually some of these tasks are only small secondary tasks. But in contrast to the analog world, where we can carry out such tasks in the periphery of our attention (e.g., drinking a cup of tea while being engaged in a conversation), digital devices normally force us to switch windows, context and thereby the center of our attention independent from the magnitude of the task. To improve multitasking with small tasks (e.g., setting the IM state) I am taking a closer look at peripheral interaction, interaction that can be carried out in the periphery of our attention. Thereby I want to minimize disruption by secondary tasks, to carry out both types of tasks, primary and peripheral, more efficiently. To achieve that goal I developed a preliminary classification and selected several aspects to investigate in more detail.