Distributed usability evaluation of the Pennsylvania Cancer Atlas.

BACKGROUND: The Pennsylvania Cancer Atlas (PA-CA) is an interactive online atlas to help policy-makers, program managers, and epidemiologists with tasks related to cancer prevention and control. The PA-CA includes maps, graphs, tables, that are dynamically linked to support data exploration and decision-making with spatio-temporal cancer data. Our Atlas development process follows a user-centered design approach. To assess the usability of the initial versions of the PA-CA, we developed and applied a novel strategy for soliciting user feedback through multiple distributed focus groups and surveys. Our process of acquiring user feedback leverages an online web application (e-Delphi). In this paper we describe the PA-CA, detail how we have adapted e-Delphi web application to support usability and utility evaluation of the PA-CA, and present the results of our evaluation. RESULTS: We report results from four sets of users. Each group provided structured individual and group assessments of the PA-CA as well as input on the kinds of users and applications for which it is best suited. Overall reactions to the PA-CA are quite positive. Participants did, however, provide a range of useful suggestions. Key suggestions focused on improving interaction functions, enhancing methods of temporal analysis, addressing data issues, and providing additional data displays and help functions. These suggestions were incorporated in each design and implementation iteration for the PA-CA and used to inform a set of web-atlas design principles. CONCLUSION: For the Atlas, we find that a design that utilizes linked map, graph, and table views is understandable to and perceived to be useful by the target audience of cancer prevention and control professionals. However, it is clear that considerable variation in experience using maps and graphics exists and for those with less experience, integrated tutorials and help features are needed. In relation to our usability assessment strategy, we find that our distributed, web-based method for soliciting user input is generally effective. Advantages include the ability to gather information from users distributed in time and space and the relative anonymity of the participants while disadvantages include less control over when and how often participants provide input and challenges for obtaining rich input.

Informing geospatial toolset design: understanding the process of cancer data exploration and analysis.

There is an increasing need for new methods and tools that support knowledge construction from complex geospatial datasets related to public health. This study is part of a larger effort to develop, implement, and test such methods and tools. To be successful, the design of methods and tools must be grounded in a solid understanding of the work practices within the domain of use; the research reported here focuses on developing that understanding. We adopted a user-centered approach to toolset design where we investigated the work of cancer researchers and used the results of that investigation as inputs into the development of design guidelines for new geovisualization and spatial analysis tools. Specifically, we conducted key informant interviews focused on use, or potential use, of geographic information, methods, and tools and complemented this with a systematic analysis of published, peer-reviewed articles on geospatial cancer research. Results were used to characterize the typical process of analysis, to identify fundamental differences between intensive users of geospatial methods and infrequent users, and to outline key stages in analysis and tasks within the stages that methods and tools must support. Our findings inform design and implementation decisions for visual and analytic tools that support cancer prevention and control research and they provide insight into the processes used by cancer researchers for addressing the challenges of geographic factors in public health research and policy.