H79.2544 Lecture 4 Credits
Instructor(s): Trump
Compelling experiences of products, applications, and environments are grounded in a deep understanding of user needs. They are more than just user-friendly—they solve new problems, are innovative, invite participation, tell powerful stories, and use technologies in completely new ways. People easily connect with these experiences because they make sense—physically, culturally, socially, and emotionally. In a workshop format, we explore methods for observing human behavior; analyzing and solving complex design problems; and using storytelling to communicate new user experiences to others. The overall approach to user research in this course is generative: to generate new design opportunities and inspire design creativity. Students first complete several short assignments, and then begin the main project. The main project results in design concepts represented by user scenarios and rough prototypes, and supported by a research document created throughout the semester.
