empathy & define

empathy, the intellectual identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another

goal of empathy mode, to discover gaps between what people do and what people say they do

why an empathetic approach matters, it ensures designers remember they are designing for real people

interviewing, a technique used to gain empathy by talking directly with users

observation, a technique used to gain empathy by watching how people behave

immersion, a technique used to gain empathy by placing yourself in the user’s environment or experience

demographics, grouping individuals by characteristics they have little or no control over

psychographics, grouping individuals by characteristics they do have control over such as interests, values, habits, lifestyle, personality, and wants or needs

persona, a fictional character created from research to represent a user type and help designers understand needs, experiences, behaviors, and goals

how to create a persona – start with research, begin by gathering information about real users

how to create a persona – use your imagination, creatively fill in details based on research

how to create a persona – write a narrative with dialogue, describe the person’s story and voice

how to create a persona – name the person, give the persona an identity

human-centered design (HCD), an approach to problem-solving that puts people at the center and begins with empathy

insight statement format, [user or target audience] needs [user needs] so that [insight]

define, an actionable and meaningful problem statement that needs to be solved

problem statement, a concise and actionable sentence or question that defines purpose and direction

what does the persona want, insights

why do they want it, issues

how do we measure success, objective or challenge

good problem statement – clear concise and simple, it is easy to understand and focused

good problem statement – human centered, it focuses on people not products

good problem statement – does not suggest solutions, it stays focused on the problem

good problem statement – ask why, it looks deeper into the real issue

good problem statement – reflect on data and insights, it is based on research

good problem statement – keep it universal, avoid jargon and slang

good problem statement – “how might we…”, it is framed as an open design question

design challenge, an initial statement that defines the issue and moves from problem to solution

design challenge keywords, rethink redesign and create

what if, a prompt that changes perspective and encourages new ways of thinking