Participatory Design: Getting Started

by Troy Abel

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This blog post is an introduction to Participatory Design (PD) and the methodologies that encompass PD. This is the first in a series of PD themed blog posts, so stay tuned for the next installment!

Participatory Design, User-Centered Design, and Human-Centered Design, all refer to methods which involve users and stakeholders during the iterative design process in hopes of meeting the wants, needs, and affordances of end-users. Participatory Design can be implemented in a variety of ways depending on what type of information the team is trying to capture– from design requirements to usability, the choice is yours.

Participatory Design was initially used in the design and development of computer applications and systems in Scandinavia and was referred to as Cooperative Design (Bødker et al., 2004). As the theory moved westward to the US, the term Participatory replaced Cooperative due to the nature of the first applications in business and the need to stress the vested interest of the participants.

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The primary goal of PD is to help provide greater consideration and understanding of the needs and wants of system users. Participatory Design can be used to carefully integrate the needs, perspectives, and contexts of stakeholders, therefore, increasing the likelihood of diffusion, adoption, and impact of the resulting user-centered system.

For example, the design of a new mobile yellow page application created to target certain populations and connect users with providers. Wouldn’t it make sense to involve the end-users of this application from the onset of the project? Absolutely! Again, PD can be implemented in a variety of forms, for this example let’s assume we begin by asking our end-users to participate in a design needs session where the design team meets with end-users and fleshes out the necessary design requirements for the mobile app. From the beginning of the project, the users will have their voice heard and incorporated into the design of the final system.

Iterative Usability Testing is paramount to the success of any system, and this is another point where users can assist the design team in shaping the usability of the system. By conducting iterative usability tests, perhaps as short weekly lean UX sprints, the design team and engineers can quickly test and iterate the design of a new system- and be agile in the process.

IDEO has put together its own version of a ‘Human Centered Design Toolkit’. Check it out. Lots of cool techniques, tips, and more to get yourself in the HCD head space.

Remember: by incorporating your users feedback throughout the creation of your system, you are moving towards a better design and adopted system for all stakeholders.

If you have any questions, or want to talk Participatory Design, reach out to us info@keylimeinteractive.com

 

Bødker, K., Kensing, F., and Simonsen, J. (2004). Participatory IT design: Designing for business and workplace realities. Cambridge, MA, USA: MIT Press.

Your Environment Impacts Your Impression

by Kelley Parsons
Often when we think of the user-centered design process and the methods used to optimize a user’s experience, we think in terms of its utility to aid in maximizing design improvements for a device’s interface, or perhaps, its physical properties.  However, there are opportunities beyond this common application. If we consider that a user’s experience can be influenced by interactions that occur within a broader system or service.  We can also further note that the definition of an interface is the point at which two systems meet, we can then explore the possibilities of utilizing a user-centered design approach (and any number of methodologies) to assess the impact of the environment on user perceptions or experiences as they occur within that environment. To date, the results of many large studies have shown a strong relationship between the physical environment and the perceptions of its occupants. For example, when a doctor’s office waiting room was considered to be newer in appearance, had nice furnishings, artwork etc., patient’s perceived quality of care was positively influenced while their reported anxiety decreased.
When considering the applications of user-centered design and the impact of user experience, we think beyond its being a way to gauge user perceptions of a device interface and consider it as a possible means of assessing user perceptions of the space or ‘interface’ within which people are providing a particular service.

Food For Thought

Just as a poorly designed product interface can result in negative perceptions of the product as a whole, a poorly designed environment can result in negative perceptions of quality of service as a whole.