Children may expect drag-and-drop instead of point-and-click

Abstract

In this paper we present evidence from a pilot study that children may have started to expect the drag-and-drop interaction style. This is in contrast with probably the most cited paper on this topic from 2001, stating that point-and-click is the most appropriate interaction style for children between 6 and 12 years old. Instead of providing children with information on the interaction style expected we developed two point-and-click interfaces and let children explore those interfaces themselves. Children consistently tried to apply the drag-and-drop interaction style both initially and after having discovered the point-and-click style, resulting in problems in interacting with the interfaces. This was especially clear for the type of action having a natural mapping to holding down the mouse-button, such as cutting or drawing lines. In summary, it appears that children have begun to expect the drag-and-drop interaction style and that deviating from this standard may result in serious usability problems.