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Abstract

This article contributes to the understanding of how menu-driven information systems in vehicles are learned and which system-immanent and user-immanent attributes influence the learning process. Presentation mode and ambiguity of lexical structures e.g. turned out to be relevant system attributes, concerning user attributes previous knowledge, attitude towards and interest in techniques as well as cognitive speed in information processing played an important role. Empirical studies show that users do not only acquire lexical knowledge about a menu system but also construe some kind of a 'spatial imagery' of the system. In addition, the design of the operating device affects the learnability of the system. Thus, lexical, spatial and motor representations of the menu system influence the learning process significantly. At the same time the importance of user attributes has to be considered. Therefore, observing the learnability of information systems in vehicles goes beyond the mere consideration of a learning curve. In fact, learning a menu system is a multi-coded process in which lexical, spatial and motor representations of users have to be considered as important factors relevant to learning.