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Cited by 718Innovative Human-Technology InteractionUsability and User Interface DesignDesign Education and Practice

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 2 of the 2 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

The anatomy of prototypes: Prototypes as filters, prototypes as manifestations of design ideas

Lim, Youn-Kyung, Stolterman, Erik, Tenenberg, Josh·2008·ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction
DOI 10.1145/1375761.1375762
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Abstract

The role of prototypes is well established in the field of HCI and Design. A lack of knowledge, however, about the fundamental nature of prototypes still exists. Researchers have attempted to identify different types of prototypes, such as low- vs. high-fidelity prototypes, but these attempts have centered on evaluation rather than support of design exploration. There have also been efforts to provide new ways of thinking about the activity of using prototypes, such as experience prototyping and paper prototyping, but these efforts do not provide a discourse for understanding fundamental characteristics of prototypes. In this article, we propose an anatomy of prototypes as a framework for prototype conceptualization. We view prototypes not only in their role in evaluation but also in their generative role in enabling designers to reflect on their design activities in exploring a design space. We base this framework on the findings of two case studies that reveal two key dimensions: prototypes as filters and prototypes as manifestations. We explain why these two dimensions are important and how this conceptual framework can benefit our field by establishing more solid and systematic knowledge about prototypes and prototyping.

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  • There is a lack of theory on prototyping.

    “Even so, there is a lack of theory on prototyping.”

    From An empirically based model of software prototyping: a mapping study and a multi-case study (2023) · cites this paper as Lim et al. 2008

  • The scope affects the cost of producing a prototype and the feedback that can be obtained.

    “The scope affects the cost of producing a prototype and the feedback that can be obtained (Derboven et al. 2010;Lim et al. 2008;Liu and Khooshabeh 2003;McCurdy et al. 2006;Tronvoll et al. 2017).”

    From An empirically based model of software prototyping: a mapping study and a multi-case study (2023) · cites this paper as Lim et al. 2008

  • Prototyping is commonly used to explore the solution space and learn by experimenting with ideas, and is a foundational purpose for any prototyping.

    “Prototyping is commonly used to explore the solution space (Dow et al. 2011;Lim et al. 2008;Rahman et al. 2017;Wiberg and Stolterman 2014) and learn by experimenting with ideas (Budde and Zullighoven 1990;Chen et al. 1994;Tronvoll et al. 2017), and is a foundational purpose for any prototyping.”

    From An empirically based model of software prototyping: a mapping study and a multi-case study (2023) · cites this paper as Lim et al. 2008

  • User interface design can be validated through prototyping and uncover various usability issues.

    “User interface design can be validated through prototyping (Derboven et al. 2010;Hakim and Spitzer 2000;Zink et al. 2017) and uncover various usability issues (Lim et al. 2008).”

    From An empirically based model of software prototyping: a mapping study and a multi-case study (2023) · cites this paper as Lim et al. 2008

  • The scope of a prototype describes the extent to which a prototype resembles the final product and is represented by breadth of functionality, functional refinement, and data realism.

    “The scope of a prototype describes the extent to which a prototype resembles the final product and is, in our model, represented by the breadth of the prototype's functionality (Bruegger et al. 2009;Budde and Zullighoven 1990;Goldman and Narayanaswamy 1992;Hakim and Spitzer 2000;Lim et al. 2008;McCurdy et al. 2006;Tronvoll et al. 2017), and the facets of functional refinement (Bruegger et al. 2009”

    From An empirically based model of software prototyping: a mapping study and a multi-case study (2023) · cites this paper as Lim et al. 2008

Citations

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Metadata

Authors
Lim, Y.-K., Stolterman, E., & Tenenberg, J.
Affiliations
  • Indiana University Bloomington (US)
  • University of Washington Tacoma (US)
ORCID
Venue
ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction
Publisher
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
Published
2008-07
Volume
15
Issue
2
Pages
1-27
ISSN
  • 1073-0516 (ISSN-L)
  • 1557-7325
DOI
10.1145/1375761.1375762
OpenAlex
W1494943720
Cited by
718
References
2
Citations by year
2026: 69 · 2025: 46 · 2024: 65 · 2023: 65 · 2022: 39 · 2021: 51 · 2020: 51 · 2019: 43 · 2018: 41 · 2017: 29 · 2016: 38 · 2015: 25 · 2014: 35 · 2013: 32 · 2012: 29
FWCI
45.88
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.acm.org/publications/policies/copyright_policy#Background (vor)
Locations
  • ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (publishedVersion)
  • KAIST Institutional Repository (KAIST) (submittedVersion)
  • 한국CAD/CAM학회 국제학술발표 논문집
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Human-Computer Interaction › Innovative Human-Technology Interaction
  • Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Human-Computer Interaction › Usability and User Interface Design
  • Physical Sciences › Engineering › Mechanical Engineering › Design Education and Practice
Keywords
prototype, prototype development, design exploration, design space, design reflection, low-fidelity prototypes, high-fidelity prototype, paper prototyping

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