Welcome to the June edition of the Userfocus usability and user experience newsletter!
- Message from the Editor
- 10 findings from psychology that every user researcher should know
- From our archives: Testing for a user need
- What we're reading
- Upcoming user experience training courses
- User experience quotation of the month
Message from the Editor
I'm a sucker for a good psychology finding. Most of them are interesting factoids that I store away never to be used again. But a few of them find their way into the day-to-day work that I do, both as a user researcher and a designer. This month I thought I would write about those studies that I find especially relevant to user research. I hope you find it useful.
10 findings from psychology that every user researcher should know
A knowledge of psychology can help user researchers be more effective when they plan research, make observations, analyse data and present the results. Read the article in full: 10 findings from psychology that every user researcher should know.
From our archives: Testing for a user need
One of the most important questions faced by start-ups and established companies alike isn't, "Is my system usable?" or "Is this a great user experience?", but "Do people actually need this thing?" This article presents a structured interview technique for checking if you have identified a user need. Read the article in full: Testing for a user need.
What we’re reading
Some interesting usability-related articles that got our attention over the last month:
- Travis's Law of Usability: The number of 'helpful' signs stuck to a UI is inversely proportional to its usability.
- Use this exercise to solve any Product Design Challenge.
- The 6 steps to make your personas more scientific.
- Useful tips on what NOT to say to the disabled people you include in your user research.
- Ikea realise they aren't designing furniture but experiences. Check out their 'What Makes a Home?' report.
- The idea that the tools of the behavioral sciences are in the hands of benign liberals is now "hopelessly quaint".
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Upcoming user experience training courses
New dates! Foundation Certificate in User Experience, Oct 10-12 2017, London.
Gain the BCS Foundation Certificate in User Experience in this fun and hands-on training course. You'll practice in all the key areas of UX — from interviewing your users through to prototyping and usability testing your designs — while you prepare for and take the exam.
More information about this training course: Foundation Certificate in User Experience.
User Experience quotation of the month
"When you want to know how and why people do the things they do, the best people to learn from are the doers themselves, and the best place to learn is where the doing gets done." Jan Chipchase.
Hungry for more?
Foundation Certificate in UX
Gain hands-on practice in all the key areas of UX while you prepare for the BCS Foundation Certificate in User Experience. More details
Newsletter archive
Look back over previous newsletters in the newsletter archive.