An engineering view of the human interface

An examination is given of the human half of the human computer interface (HCI) from an engineering viewpoint. Humans are complex systems in their own right which would take many years to understand, but there are groups who have provided a relatively simple model for the analysis of humans and their transactions. The model and methodology is transactional analysis (TA) as proposed by E. Berne (1972). TA is the study of human interaction by the study of people´s ego states and the communications between states, both internally and externally. The ego states defined are: parent (defining those elements learnt from authority figures); adult (defining those elements which are processed and considered); and child (defining those elements concerned with emotion, charm and creativity). The three ego states are present in every person and one´s actions can be interpreted as resulting from one or other of these states