Venkatesh Sivaraman
Publications
More Than "Means to an End": Supporting Reasoning with Transparently Designed AI Data Science Processes
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools can now help people perform complex data science tasks regardless of their expertise. While these tools have great potential to help more people work with data, their end-to-end approach does not support users in evaluating alternative approaches and reformulating problems, both critical to solving open-ended tasks in high-stakes domains. In this paper, we reflect on two AI data science systems designed for the medical setting and how they function as tools for thought. We find that success in these systems was driven by constructing AI workflows around intentionally-designed intermediate artifacts, such as readable query languages, concept definitions, or input-output examples. Despite opaqueness in other parts of the AI process, these intermediates helped users reason about important analytical choices, refine their initial questions, and contribute their unique knowledge. We invite the HCI community to consider when and how intermediate artifacts should be designed to promote effective data science thinking.
Intelligent Reasoning Cues: A Framework and Case Study of the Roles of AI Information in Complex Decisions
Artificial intelligence (AI)-based decision support systems can be highly accurate yet still fail to support users or improve decisions. Existing theories of AI-assisted decision-making focus on calibrating reliance on AI advice, leaving it unclear how different system designs might influence the reasoning processes underneath. We address this gap by reconsidering AI interfaces as collections of intelligent reasoning cues: discrete pieces of AI information that can individually influence decision-making. We then explore the roles of eight types of reasoning cues in a high-stakes clinical decision (treating patients with sepsis in intensive care). Through contextual inquiries with six teams and a think-aloud study with 25 physicians, we find that reasoning cues have distinct patterns of influence that can directly inform design. Our results also suggest that reasoning cues should prioritize tasks with high variability and discretion, adapt to ensure compatibility with evolving decision needs, and provide complementary, rigorous insights on complex cases.