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Main Authors: Wang, Lifei, Friedman, Natalie, Zhu, Chengchao, Zhu, Zeshu, Mountford, S. Joy
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.06457
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author Wang, Lifei
Friedman, Natalie
Zhu, Chengchao
Zhu, Zeshu
Mountford, S. Joy
author_facet Wang, Lifei
Friedman, Natalie
Zhu, Chengchao
Zhu, Zeshu
Mountford, S. Joy
contents As large language models (LLMs) become ubiquitous in workplace tools and decision-making processes, ensuring explainability and fostering user trust are critical. Although advancements in LLM engineering continue, human-centered design is still catching up, particularly when it comes to embedding transparency and trust into AI interfaces. This study evaluates user experiences with two distinct AI interfaces - node-tree interfaces and chatbot interfaces - to assess their performance in exploratory, follow-up inquiry, decision-making, and problem-solving tasks. Our design-driven approach introduces a node-tree interface that visually structures AI-generated responses into hierarchically organized, interactive nodes, allowing users to navigate, refine, and follow up on complex information. In a comparative study with n=20 business users, we observed that while the chatbot interface effectively supports linear, step-by-step queries, it is the node-tree interface that enhances brainstorming. Quantitative and qualitative findings indicate that node-tree interfaces not only improve task performance and decision-making support but also promote higher levels of user trust by preserving context. Our findings suggest that adaptive AI interfaces capable of switching between structured visualizations and conversational formats based on task requirements can significantly enhance transparency and user confidence in AI-powered systems. This work contributes actionable insights to the fields of human-robot interaction and AI design, particularly for enterprise applications where trust-building is critical for teams.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2510_06457
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Evaluating Node-tree Interfaces for AI Explainability
Wang, Lifei
Friedman, Natalie
Zhu, Chengchao
Zhu, Zeshu
Mountford, S. Joy
Human-Computer Interaction
Artificial Intelligence
H.5.2; I.2.7
As large language models (LLMs) become ubiquitous in workplace tools and decision-making processes, ensuring explainability and fostering user trust are critical. Although advancements in LLM engineering continue, human-centered design is still catching up, particularly when it comes to embedding transparency and trust into AI interfaces. This study evaluates user experiences with two distinct AI interfaces - node-tree interfaces and chatbot interfaces - to assess their performance in exploratory, follow-up inquiry, decision-making, and problem-solving tasks. Our design-driven approach introduces a node-tree interface that visually structures AI-generated responses into hierarchically organized, interactive nodes, allowing users to navigate, refine, and follow up on complex information. In a comparative study with n=20 business users, we observed that while the chatbot interface effectively supports linear, step-by-step queries, it is the node-tree interface that enhances brainstorming. Quantitative and qualitative findings indicate that node-tree interfaces not only improve task performance and decision-making support but also promote higher levels of user trust by preserving context. Our findings suggest that adaptive AI interfaces capable of switching between structured visualizations and conversational formats based on task requirements can significantly enhance transparency and user confidence in AI-powered systems. This work contributes actionable insights to the fields of human-robot interaction and AI design, particularly for enterprise applications where trust-building is critical for teams.
title Evaluating Node-tree Interfaces for AI Explainability
topic Human-Computer Interaction
Artificial Intelligence
H.5.2; I.2.7
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.06457