Project Themes: Cartographic Interaction, Stress, Decision Making, HCI, Inclusive Design, Visual Complexity
Research Team
Brynn D. Patrello, P. William Limpisathian
Publication
- Fourthcoming
Objective
This project investigates how acute psychological stress influences cartographic interaction. Specifically, it examines whether stress alters how users perform map-based tasks, interact with cartographic interfaces, and perceive map designs. The study also evaluates the role of visual complexity and explores how stress and visual complexity jointly shape map-use behavior.
Background
Maps are frequently used in contexts characterized by uncertainty, urgency, and psychological strain, from emergency response and crisis management to everyday navigation. Despite this reality, most cartographic research assumes users approach maps in a psychologically neutral state. At the same time, visual complexity has been shown to affect cognitive load, perception, and performance in interface design and cartography. This project brings together research on psychological stress, visual complexity, and cartographic interaction to better understand the human factors that influence map use.
To study this phenomenon, a controlled laboratory experiment was designed in which participants completed interactive map tasks after either a validated stress-induction procedure or a non-stress control procedure. The study extends user-centered cartographic research by focusing not only on map design, but also on the psychological state of the user.
Research Questions
- How does psychological stress influence cartographic interaction?
- How does visual complexity influence cartographic interaction?
- How do stress and visual complexity interact with each other to influence cartographic interaction?
Hypothesis
We hypothesize that standard WCAG contrast tools overlook critical perceptual effects—particularly simultaneous chromatic shifts—that can undermine legibility in map interfaces. By incorporating these effects into our perceptual model and building them into a usable tool and Android-based app, we will enable designers to detect issues early and improve accessibility outcomes for diverse user groups, including those with color vision deficiencies or neurodiverse perceptual profiles.
Key Findings
- Acute psychological stress did not produce a simple decline in cartographic performance. Instead, stress primarily altered interaction behavior.
- Participants in the stress condition generally completed tasks successfully but used more interaction effort, particularly through increased click counts.
- Visual complexity influenced click count, perceived difficulty, confidence, and subjective evaluations of maps.
- High levels of visual complexity were generally associated with less favorable perceptions and interaction outcomes, while medium-complexity maps often provided the most balanced user experience. The relationship between stress and map use was nuanced. Rather than simply making users perform worse, stress appeared to change the strategies and behaviors users employed to complete map tasks.
Contributions
- Introduces acute psychological stress as an experimentally controlled variable in cartographic interaction research.
- Adapts established psychological stress-induction methodologies, including components informed by the Maastricht Acute Stress Test, for cartographic research applications.
- Provides one of the first controlled investigations of how a user’s psychological state influences interactive map use.
- Expands user-centered cartography beyond design-focused questions by considering how user characteristics and context shape interaction outcomes.
- Demonstrates the importance of studying not only whether users reach correct outcomes, but also how they interact with maps under cognitively and perceptually demanding conditions.