An Affordance-Based Perspective on Human-Machine Interface Design

The distinction between events and affordances, as offered by Stoffregen (this issue) in the target article, parallels one that is useful for understanding issues of human-interface design. The emphasis within interface design has typically been on the representation of events, but the conceptual basis of this approach has lacked any coherent structure that can drive research or support design practice. In contrast, affordance theory has the potential to guide a research program that could provide a coherent basis for the practice of interface design. In this commentary, the need and the opportunities are illustrated with reference to examples from interface design issues for the modern aircraft cockpit.