Research has drawn from linguistics, especially pragmatics, to understand how the way we talk with computers changes depending on the communication context.

According to Suchman, robustness is a key consideration in the design of dialogue. Robustness refers to the communication partners' ability to achieve shared understanding even in light of misunderstandings and other unanticipated troubles.

HCI researchers have developed a rich palette of theories to understand such dialogues. These theories explain what happens in dialogue and how it shapes the relationship between the partners. These theories also have implications for how we design interaction.

Comparing mode-based interactions. A device is designed to allow users to control the relative humidity in their house. The device has two modes. In Automatic mode, the system keeps the relative humidity in the 50%–60% range. In the Manual mode, the user can set the desired level of relative humidity and the system will attempt to maintain it. The device is a small wall-mounted unit with the following UI elements. (a) The visual display indicates the current level of relative humidity and whether the system is in Automatic or Manual mode. (b) The "–" and "+" buttons enable the user to reduce or increase the desired level of relative humidity, respectively. (c) The "Automatic" button puts the system in Automatic mode. If the user pushes the "–" or "+" button, the system switches to Manual mode and remains in that mode until the user pushes the "Automatic" button. (a) Draw a state diagram for this system. (b) By viewing interaction with this system as goal-directed action, explain the steps comprising the gulf of evaluation and the gulf of execution for this UI. (c) State the type and level of automation of this system. (d) Is this system a mixed-initiative interface? Justify your answer.

Mixed-initiative interfaces. Pick any AI-assisted feature that you are familiar with. Assess it against Horvitz's principles of mixed-initiative interfaces.

Gulfs. Pick a graphical user interface, for example, something you use for education. Then, choose a task, for example, "sending a message to the teacher." Assess this task through the lens of Norman's two gulfs: the gulf of evaluation and the gulf of execution.

Theories of human–computer dialogue. Consider the following potential dialogue interfaces: (a) a user interacting with an automated chat agent from an airline to resolve a delayed flight; (b) a child uploading homework using a web interface; and (c) a user who is trying to show a picture on their mobile phone on a nearby television screen. Make any necessary assumptions about the interfaces and discuss which model of dialogue would provide the most insight for each interface: (a) FSMs, (b) dialogue as goal-directed action, (c) dialogue as embodied action, or (d) dialogue from a communication perspective.

Communication partners: Who are the actors in the dialogue? Communication goals: What is the final state the computer should be in for the user to consider the task completed? Communication act: What are the possible communication acts? In other words, what are the possible utterances or messages that can be delivered? Communication sequence: Draw a sequence of the communication turns leading to the goal, similar to Figure 18.1. Initiative: To which degree can each partner initiate communication on their own? Cue: Which cues are shown to help the user understand the state of the computer? Feedback: Which cues are shown to help the user understand the effects of their communication acts?

Core concepts of dialogue interaction. Dialogue offers a rich conceptual framework for understanding interaction. First, choose an everyday interaction with which you are familiar. It can be anything from filling out a form to chatting with a chatbot. Then, choose a particular dialogue to focus on, for example, creating a user account or printing a document. Now, provide the following information for the dialogue: