Shows how cognitive psychology can provide guidelines to design computer systems that are easy to use, based on the assumption that prior knowledge of the real world and natural language affect users' attitudes toward the computer. Concludes that human-computer communication is facilitated when the system is consistent with this knowledge.…

Pretests measuring critical thinking ability and mental alertness were administered to 72 first-year college students at the beginning of an introductory computer programing course. Posttests administered at the end of the semester showed significant improvement in both areas, indicating that instruction in programing improves students' critical…