Shared understanding of end-users´ requirements in e-Science projects

The acquisition by developers of e-science applications of a thorough understanding of the requirements of end-users has been recognized as playing a critical role in the usability of such applications. However, there is another dimension to such an understanding that also plays an important role, namely the extent to which these developers converge on a shared understanding of these requirements. This paper considers why such a shared understanding is important, and highlights possible obstacles to this that may arise in the context of e-science projects. A research project, consisting of qualitative case studies of two projects, is being undertaken, with the goal of producing recommendations for improving shared understanding of end-users´ requirements amongst developers of e-science applications. Although the data collection is still ongoing, it is anticipated that the research will be completed, and recommendations developed, in time for the IEEE e-science conference 2009.