Time: 3:30 pm - 4:45 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays
Location: Stinson Remick Hall 108
Instructor: Toby Jia-Jun Li (he/him)
Email: toby.j.li@nd.edu
Office Hour: 2 pm - 3 pm on Wednesdays at Cushing Hall 214B or by appointment
Course Website: https://sites.google.com/view/cse60427-fall2025/home
This course provides an introduction to the different types of contributions, the foundational theories, and the core methods for research in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and human-centered research in other CS disciplines. The course consists of a combination of readings and discussion of seminal work in the area, an overview of research methodology, and several lectures on the latest research topics in technical HCI.
This course is designed for graduate students who are interested in doing HCI research or research in other subdisciplines of CS (e.g., AI, SE, PL, Systems, Robotics, Data Science) that involve human aspects. It might be suitable for advanced undergraduate students who are interested in academic research in HCI. We do not assume prior background in HCI. This course is explicitly not focused on the UX design and UX research methods commonly used in HCI practice -- students interested in them will be better served by CSE 40424/60424.
The final deliverable of the course will be a full research proposal on a topic of choice. Students are encouraged to integrate their own research interests into the proposal. There are several milestones throughout the semester towards the final proposal.
Skills at identifying and refining HCI research questions
Skills at identifying opportunities and applying human-centered research techniques in adjacent fields in CS (e.g., AI, SE, PL, Systems, Robotics)
Understanding of the strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of different types of HCI research methods, and how to design the appropriate approach for different research questions
Understanding of the ethics issues in HCI research
Familiarity with several latest research trends and topics in technical HCI
A research proposal on a topic of choice that includes:
Research questions, expected research contributions, and the intellectual merits
A comprehensive and interdisciplinary literature survey on the topic
A detailed description of the proposed research methods (need-finding, prototyping, evaluation), including the analysis methods for the expected results
Discussion on the broader impact of the proposed work
Ways of Knowing in HCI. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-1-4939-0378-8
The book should be available for free through the ND library via SpringerLink. Contact the instructor if you run into any issues accessing the book.