IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication Dec 2006

Case Studies as Minimalist Information

John M. Carroll Pennsylvania State University ; Mary Beth Rosson Pennsylvania State University

Abstract

Case studies are evocative narrative descriptions of a specific, real-world activity, event, or problem. Case-based learning is well established in professional education (e.g., law, business, medicine) and rapidly expanding in many other disciplines. We use cases as an instructional resource in our own teaching of usability engineering. In this paper, we analyze the proposition that cases can be a minimalist-information design technique-that is, as a design technique that (1) orients information to facilitate user action, (2) anchors information in activity, (3) prevents, mitigates, and leverages error, and (4) develops user autonomy. We discuss the next steps in a research program on case-based learning and speculate on other applications of cases as minimalist information design

Journal
IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
Published
2006-12-01
DOI
10.1109/tpc.2006.885836
CompPile
Open Access
Closed
Topics
teacher development technical communication
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (2)

  1. Palma et al. (2021)
    Identifying Multidisciplinary Metrics to Analyze NASA Case Studies
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  2. Kase et al. (2010)
    Synthesizing IT Case Studies of Nonprofits Using a Multiple-Level Patterns-Base…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

References (28)

  1. rosson (2004)
    Putting Scenarios Into Practice The State of the Art in Scenarios and Use Cases
  2. 10.2307/1163282
     ↗
  3. carroll (2000)
    10.7551/mitpress/4398.001.0001
    Making Use Scenario-Based Design of Human-Computer Interactions  ↗
  4. rosson (2002)
    Usability Engineering Scenario-Based Development of Human-Computer Interaction
  5. rosson (0)
    Usability Case Library
Show all 28 →
  1. 10.1145/1101670.1101673
     ↗
  2. 10.1075/dd.4.3.03mei
     ↗
  3. collins (1991)
    In Educational Values and Cognitive Instruction Implications for Reform
  4. rogoff (1990)
    10.1093/oso/9780195059731.001.0001
    Apprenticeship in Thinking Cognitive Development in Social Context  ↗
  5. 10.1017/CBO9780511815355
     ↗
  6. 10.1109/HICSS.2005.135
     ↗
  7. (1994)
    special issue: case teaching in international relations
    Int Studies Notes
  8. (2004)
    Interface Hall of Shame
  9. (2004)
    National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
  10. shulman (1992)
    Case Methods in Teacher Education
  11. schn (1991)
    The Reflective Turn Case Studies in and on Educational Practice
  12. carroll (1990)
    The Nurnberg Funnel Designing Minimalist Instruction for Practical Computer Skill
  13. wasserman (1993)
    Getting Down to Cases Learning to Teach with Case Studies
  14. 10.1207/s15327809jls0204_2
     ↗
  15. (1998)
    Minimalism Beyond the Nurnberg Funnel
  16. 10.1177/0967010601032004008
     ↗
  17. 10.1287/orsc.5.1.14
     ↗
  18. van der meij (2000)
    the role and design of screen images in software documentation
    J Comput Assisted Learning  ↗
  19. wenger (2002)
    Cultivating Communities of Practice A Guide to Managing Knowledge
  20. 10.1145/227210.227223
     ↗
  21. grudin (1996)
    Design Rationale Concepts Techniques and Use
  22. farkas (1998)
    Minimalism Beyond the Nurnberg Funnel
  23. bandura (1997)
    Self-Efficacy The Exercise of Control
CrossRef global citation count: 13 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Prompt: A Journal of Academic Writing Assignments Jan 2026
    A Murder Most Technical: Gamification, AI, and Rhetorical Genre Studies in the Technical Writing Classroom ↗
    Justin Cook
    genre theory writing pedagogy service learning teacher development argument collaborative writing technical communication professional writing
  2. Business and Professional Communication Quarterly Jan 2026
    LinkedIn in Business and Technical Communication: A Textbook Analysis Grounded in Digital Literacy ↗
    Sarah Moore; Kathryn Lookadoo
    modern rhetorical theory teacher development technical communication digital rhetoric social media literacy studies
  3. Business and Professional Communication Quarterly Dec 2025
    Is Your Résumé/Textbook Up-To-Date? An Audit of AI ATS Résumé Instruction ↗
    Kathryn Lookadoo; Sarah Moore
    teacher development technical communication professional writing artificial intelligence
  4. Pedagogy Oct 2025
    Contributors ↗
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory cultural rhetorics first-year composition writing pedagogy advanced composition creative writing writing across the curriculum graduate education two-year college service learning teacher development technical communication professional writing labor and working conditions archival research multimodality artificial intelligence literacy studies race and writing gender and writing disability studies literary studies editorial matter
  5. Communication Design Quarterly Jun 2025
    Review of "User Experience Research and Usability of Health Information Technology by Jessica Lynn Campbell, PhD," Campbell, J. L. (2024). User Experience Research and Usability of Health Information technology. CRC Press. ↗
    Chip Warner
    teacher development technical communication digital rhetoric book reviews