Practical International Data Management - field labels on input forms
Customer facing input forms are usually created with a bias to the creator's own cultural background. What is clear to the form creator is often opaque to the customer, espcially when that customer comes from a different part of the planet. Field labels on input forms must provide clarity for all customers. Common errors:
First name, Last name - used mainly in the United States, these indicate the relative position of those components of personal names. As people from different cultures write their names in different orders then a person who would normally write, for example, thier surname first will add that to the first name field, and their given names, which they write last, to the last name field. Better terms to use are given name and surname/family name.
Christian name - this is religiously based and should never be used - use given name instead.
Title - this is a confusing label because it can refer to a form of address, an academic title, a job title or more. Use a field label that explains clearly what you require.
Position - again, it is unclear what information is required, and results in cleaver responses such as "at my desk", "somnolant", "sitting down". Asking for job title provides more clarity.
