Integrating Neuroscience Principles into the Development of a Tailored Daily Report: A Universal Design Approach

Abstract Information management environments are typically dynamic, data-rich, and inherently multimodal but often do not support users sufficiently. Information management environments include the tools, supports, and persons which collect, organize, manage, and maintain information. The dynamism of the environment arises because of users’ need to use top-down attentional and memory approaches while attempting to use the available resources. In addition to the specific attentional and cognitive demands, many information management environments treat users as a monolithic group. The complexity of the interaction between the environment, the knowledge worker, and their individual needs creates serious difficulties in developing tailored tools and reports. Despite the intent of these “tailored” reports to simplify the interaction between the knowledge worker and the deluge of data for decision-making purposes, successfully creating a tailored report is still an active area of research. However, in the last decade, technologies that were considered theoretical have now been realized via the fourth industrial revolution. The success of the fourth industrial revolution has resulted in tools such as machine learning to drive the automated tailoring of information for individual knowledge workers. Despite early successes, the drive toward complete individualization and differentiation solely through computational means seems to reduce the effectiveness of the individual and has shown only limited success. To address these shortcomings, the authors of this essay suggest using a more comprehensive framework (Universal Design) to develop a tailored report. Universal Design (UD) is a design framework based upon the Universal Design for Learning framework. UD is a framework that promotes inclusive and equitable access to information for all knowledge workers through the application of “equalizer.” By acknowledging and addressing users’ individual needs and information processing preferences, UD can support creating a generative environment in which every individual has their needs met without individualization and differentiation occurring through specific automation. Keywords: Universal design, Adaptive environments, Information processing, Generative information environments, Knowledge workers.