Designing a Visualization Application for Interaction

Abstract: Hidden problems can be found in informal communication networks (such as email), and there is still much room for improvement on awareness of these problems. One area where such problems can be found is in the speed at which members of these networks communicate with each other (interaction speed). In this thesis, we have documented the Design Science Research study we have conducted in order to establish what causes these interaction speed problems in email networks, and how a visualization of the network could help solve them or reduce their frequency. Our research has resulted in us producing a feature list and a basic architecture for the visualization, as well as mockups based on those artifacts, along with scenarios that clarify what these mockups represent. We have also used our results to outline and discuss the main issue areas within organizational email networks. Finally, we provide guidelines for how our visualization application design can be used to reduce and/or solve issues within these areas. The contributions of this study are important due to how organizational resource and communication routes (such as email networks) can be improved through visualization and analysis. We have also identified a knowledge gap regarding the design of email network visualization applications with the specific purpose of improving interaction speed, which implies that our results do not overlap with those of previous studies.