Design Principles for Exploratory Search Interfaces

Exploratory search has been proposed as a model of search behaviour that is well suited to complex search scenarios.However, the simple interfaces that are commonplace across many search contexts limit the ability for searchers to undertake exploratory searches.Little support is provided for the discovery, learning, and investigation necessary for exploratory browsing, or the query (re)formulation, result examination, and information extraction required for focused searching.While the design and study of search interfaces that accommodate and support searchers in undertaking exploratory searches has increased in recent years, much of this work has been ad hoc in nature.In this perspective paper, five search interface design principles are presented that are specifically tuned to support exploratory search.An extension of the classical heuristic evaluation method is provided to support the inspection of prototype search interfaces with respect to the design principles.Recent research in the field is categorized according to these design principles.Patterns and gaps in the literature are identified, highlighting opportunities for further research on exploratory search interfaces.These principles provide a framework to guide the design and inspection of future search interfaces to support exploratory search, as well as a mechanism for comparing and contrasting the interactive information retrieval literature as it relates to supporting exploratory search through novel interface design.