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Task-centric application switching: How and why knowledge workers switch software applications for a single task

Amir Jahanlou, Jo Vermeulen, Tovi Grossman, Parmit Chilana, George Fitzmaurice, Justin Matejka
January 2023 · Graphics Interface 2023 (GI)
Task-centric application switching: How and why knowledge workers switch software applications for a single task

Abstract

Knowledge workers often have to switch between multiple software tools to complete a single task, which can deter productivity. Previous literature has established the high incidence of application switching that comes with the cost of converting and transferring data or getting distracted and wasting time to re-focus. This research explores why knowledge workers deliberately switch between many applications despite potential drawbacks. We interviewed 15 knowledge workers and five product teams to understand why users switch between separate tools to complete tasks. From our results, we synthesize an initial taxonomy of reasons for application switching, illustrate the role of collaboration and external forces, and detail the challenges caused by application switching. We offer design implications for how task-centric application switching can be better supported by promoting multi-tool learning, designing interfaces that enable users to reflect on their application-switching behavior, and application-switching analytics.

DOI PDF

Figures

Figure 1: The low-level reasons for application switching captured during this research (colored bubbles) divided into four primarycategories (Tool, User, Workflow, and Content), each with sub-categor
Figure 2: The initial taxonomy of task-centric application switchingwith categories and subcategories.
Figure 3: The high-level reasons for application switching that relate to the nature of the tools.
Figure 4: The high-level reasons for application switching that relate to the characteristics of the users.
Figure 5: Three groups of users emerged in this research.
Figure 6: The high-level reasons for application switching that are based on the various workflows.
Figure 7: The high-level reasons for application switching that are based on the content.
Figure 8: An example of switching among multiple applications illus-trated by P5 to complete the task of getting a contract signed. Theuser has to navigate back and forth among numerous application.

BibTeX

@inproceedings{jahanlou2023task,
  title = {Task-centric application switching: How and why knowledge workers switch software applications for a single task},
  author = {Jahanlou, Amir and Vermeulen, Jo and Grossman, Tovi and Chilana, Parmit and Fitzmaurice, George and Matejka, Justin},
  booktitle = {Graphics Interface 2023},
  year = {2023},
}