Processes Involved in Writing Effective Procedural Instructions.
Abstract
This study examined instruction writing, seeking to distinguish effective from ineffective writers in terms of the processes they use. The study involved four phases: (1) observing 16 writers composing a set of instructions for one of two procedural tasks--item assembly and knot tying; (2) identifying effective instructions through user testing; (3) observing writers revising their own instructions, first before, then after viewing a videotaped user; (4) identifying effective revisions through user testing. Effective writers tended to define more problems related to selecting information (e.g., assessing informational sufficiency, level of detail, need for feedback). They also tended to test the adequacy of information by anticipating users' responses at choice points in their emerging texts. Originator supplied keywords include: Authoring; Discourse; Technical documentation; Linguistics; Psycholinguistics; Technical writing; Text.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 28, 1985
- Accession Number
- ADA152083
Entities
People
- A. M. Rose
- R. A. Dean
- S. L. Dory
- V. M. Holland
Organizations
- American Institutes for Research