Fiddling, Pointing, Hovering, and Sliding: Embodied Actions with Three Evaluation Tools for Children

Abstract

In user studies with children, it is important to use age appropriate evaluation tools to better understand their preferences, opinions, and thoughts. Here, we studied two accepted evaluation tools: The Five Degrees of Happiness, and the Sticky Ladder rating scale; together with the Paper Ladder, a paper version of the latter. Thirty-six preschoolers rated two creative and play activities ("Painting" and "Construction Blocks") and a game ("Musical Chairs") in terms of difficulty, enjoyment, and preference. Drawing from theories of embodied and distributed cognition, we performed a video analysis of the children's interactions with these tools, focusing on how each tool supported the children's cognitive processes and communication with the researcher. Here, we first describe children's embodied behavior and discuss how these were supported by design features and affordances of the tools. Then, we discuss strengths and shortcomings of each evaluation method. Last, we provide recommendations for their design, appropriation, and usage by researchers developing and evaluating playful solutions and games for children.