During a previous project that involved improving the user experience for the Lawrence Transit System, I employed ethnography as a primary method to generate and develop an understanding of the situation from the user’s perspective. My goal as a designer was to find opportunities that were undiscovered by my initial brainstorm. Using this process, I became a sort of designer/researcher who discovered rich qualitative field data which drove my design process.
Blog
Ever heard of DCC people?
24.10.2010
Yeah. It’s ok to cringe at the sight of this photo. A trite example of a poorly managed, and implemented design. Failures on multiple levels including: Display Control Compatibility, Visual Mapping, Affordances, yes…Donald Norman’s typical repeat nightmare.
In Part I of this blog entry, I described how people’s attitudes and behaviors don’t always correlate. This can be described as a cognitive dissonance. In this blog entry, I will describe more about how peoples’ behaviors and attitudes are embedded within different knowledge levels. As designers, we can appropriately access these knowledge levels to learn more about our user’s experiences, fears, aspirations, and latent needs. Using this new knowledge, we can design products and services with a more effective user-centric approach.
Part I: Actions speak louder than words
Having packed my trunk to it’s limit with recyclables, I headed out to recycling center while battling the elements. As I arrived, it was really busy. People in all ages amusingly used creative ways to sort and dump their waste all the while trying to stay dry. To be honest, I was impressed with the level of effort these people displayed. Obviously, these people felt recycling was their duty, and acted on it without reservation – even in stormy weather. As I joined in on their efforts, I reflected on a particular situation unlike what I was observing: behaviors and beliefs don’t always correlate.
The internship
28.07.2010
Close your eyes. Picture this. It’s summertime. And I mean summertime. Blazing hot temperatures, record high heat indexes, and humidity levels so intense, a wet sponge is given an inferiority complex. Now, picture you’re stuck on an a frying hot roof 25 feet high that’s swarming with yellow jackets and biting flies. A simple slip and you meet death either by concrete or rosebud trees.