Functional Analysis for Document Design
Authors: Lentz, Leo; Pander Maat, Henk
Source: Technical Communication, Volume 51, Number 3, August 2004 , pp. 387-398(12)
Publisher: Society for Technical Communication
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Abstract:
The first part of this article distinguishes between individual cognitive and behavioral effects, and organizational results. It also shows how a main document purpose may be decomposed into a hierarchical network containing sub-goals. But a functional analysis needs to do more than describe single purposes. Single communicative purposes are an important source of design constraints but not the only source. Often the most critical questions in document design concern the consequences of combining different purposes and different audiences in the same document, and of combining purpose-related considerations with other considerations like financial and legal ones. These issues can best be discussed by analyzing the multiple constraints that may be derived from different components of the functional context. That is shown in the second part of the article.Document Type: Research article
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