Using Action-Object Pairs as a Conceptual Framework for Transaction Log Analysis

One issue with employing transaction and search log analysis is that there is so much data that one can sometimes get lost in the trees and miss the forest. This is especially true when one is trying to leverage log analysis to improve or modify system design.

I co-wrote a book chapter concerning the action-object pair approach as a conceptual framework for conducting transaction log analysis. This approach focuses log analysis on system design.

In this paradigm, there are two basic components in the interaction between the user and the system recorded in a transaction log, which are action and object. An action is a specific expression of the user. An object is a self-contained information object, the recipient of the action. These two components form one interaction set or an action-object pair. A series of action-object pairs represents the interaction session.

The action-object pair approach provides a conceptual framework for the collection, analysis, and understanding of data from transaction logs in a way that can benefit system design by providing the organizing principle for implicit feedback and other interactions concerning the user.

See the book chapters on using action-object pairs as a conceptual framework for transaction log analysis