Icon Evaluation Using Spreading Activation Model

Icon conveys symbolic information which they have become ubiquitous as main element of GUI. However, users often cannot intuitively understand its functional meanings. Icon has to be designed for users to easily understand functional meanings. In order to evaluate icon, the spreading activation model can be used to effectively understand the process of information retrieval. In asymmetric spreading activation model is that in the two nodes the degree of spreading activation is different according to direction. Thus, asymmetric spreading activation theory was performed evaluating the strength of association when users see visual image to associate their verbal meaning (visual image - verbal meaning pair) and users see verbal meaning to associate their visual image (verbal meaning - visual image pair). According to the direction, this study hypothesizes that the well-designed icons have symmetric relationship rather than asymmetric relationship between the two pairs. The strength of association is measured through the reaction time and the accuracy rate. In performing SAT (spreading activation test), the ten icons were selected as word processing software icons. After first SAT, newly designed icons were developed based on Korean mental model, and second SAT was conducted using them. The results showed that the accuracy rate of newly designed icon has been improved. Also there is significant difference of reaction time between current icons and newly designed icons. Well-designed icon is confirmed that the strength of association relationship arises symmetrically rather than asymmetrically between the two pairs. User centered icons could be designed by improving the strength of association between the two pairs. Asymmetric SAT evaluates the strength of the association between the visual image and the verbal meanings to contribute to the development of icon which it related to human's association structure.