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Exploring cognitive style and task-specific preferences for process representations

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Abstract

Process models describe someone’s understanding of processes. Processes can be described using unstructured, semi-formal or diagrammatic representation forms. These representations are used in a variety of task settings, ranging from understanding processes to executing or improving processes, with the implicit assumption that the chosen representation form will be appropriate for all task settings. We explore the validity of this assumption by examining empirically the preference for different process representation forms depending on the task setting and cognitive style of the user. Based on data collected from 120 business school students, we show that preferences for process representation formats vary dependent on application purpose and cognitive styles of the participants. However, users consistently prefer diagrams over other representation formats. Our research informs a broader research agenda on task-specific applications of process modeling. We offer several recommendations for further research in this area.

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Acknowledgments

Dr Recker’s contributions to this research have been supported by a grant from the Australian Research Council (DE120100776).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Information Systems and New Media, WU - Vienna University of Economics and Business, Welthandelsplatz 1, Building D2, 1020, Vienna, Austria

    Kathrin Figl

  2. Information Systems School, Queensland University of Technology, Office P-820/Gardens Point Campus, 2 George Street, Brisbane, QLD, 4000, Australia

    Jan Recker

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  1. Kathrin Figl
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Correspondence to Kathrin Figl.

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Table 7 Participants’ preferences across the four tasks
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Figl, K., Recker, J. Exploring cognitive style and task-specific preferences for process representations. Requirements Eng 21, 63–85 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00766-014-0210-2

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