Multi-respondent research and Human Centered Design as a design foundation

Abstract

In the following study, I have tried to introduce the concern relevant to a comprehensive way of designing products and services. Most often, the issues I discuss are related to digital products and focus on the topic of user-centered design, although the design methods described by me can also be applied to the process of designing physical objects such as furniture or buildings. Design is, of course, not only a matter of design, but also the preceding research, analysis, testing and implementation of design conclusions. In, user-oriented approach, design should not be a form of expression of the designer or illustration of her vision, but mainly it is a process that seeks to create a useful and attractive product for the recipient. For such a product to be created, designers must take into account the needs and problems of the recipients for whom they design. Designing is a way of conveying information between the designer and the recipient, in other words a kind of communication. “Good design requires good communication.”1 The quotation by Don Norman, a world-renowned designer and researcher in the field of user experience, emphasizes the essence of design which is communication and understanding the recipient. In order to understand the user of a product or service designed by researchers and designers there is a strong need to understand his or her needs. For this purpose, researchers conduct the research which results will be a foundation that will give designers the opportunity to design in accordance with the needs of users. This kind of design process is based on information, not on beliefs or vision of the designer. There are many design methods and ways to gather information and not each of these methods will give us specific results. This variety of options makes the design process and project management a long and complicated process, which is the reason why the ability to manage and plan it is so important. I would like to explain those methods to my audience in the following chapters. All factors, such as the choice of research method, the way of collecting information from respondents, defining the research group and the target audience of the project have a real impact on the quality and usability of the designed product. Design is not only something we all need, but it also pays off. The constantly growing market in 2021 is flooding us with a wave of products and offering a hugely diverse choice. Just by taking a look at the number of apps available for smartphones we can see the scale of products the users can potentially interact with. In 2020 alone, according to the report from www.safebettingsites.com Google Play alone recorded 108.5 billion billion app downloads.2 Therefore, we can ask ourselves what to do to make my product/brand/service visible and respected on the market. There are many factors contributing to this problem, but I would like to emphasize the role of a well-planned design process based on research rather than anticipation. Good design, as we already know, consists not only of the visual aspect, but also of the experience that the user will experience during the interaction. To have an idea how the product should look like and what emotions it should evoke in the user, we need to do some research first. After all, how can we design something for people without knowing their habits, customs or demand for a given product? "No one can show your customer what works and what doesn't, what pleases and what bothers them, what engages or bores the user better than they can."3 According to the quote of Dr. Janet. M. Six, the specialists in the field of information visualization, ignoring the user in the design process may lead to a situation where the designed product will not meet the expectations of users. Designers can avoid this mistake by using a continuous validation of ideas through creating research on users and conducting usability tests. In my paper, I focus on the issue related to ignoring the audience in the design phase. In the theoretical work, I describe and highlight the advantages of Human-Centered Design, and the practical work introduces specific solutions that address the problem of recipient ignorance in the design of medical services in Poland. Designing things by putting emphasis on people, responding to their needs and problems is crucial and creates the basis for the idea of Human Centered Design. By the definition of ISO 9241-210:2019(E): Human-Centred Design is an approach to interactive systems development that aims to make systems usable and useful by focusing on the users, their needs and requirements, and by applying human factors/ergonomics, and usability knowledge and techniques. This approach enhances effectiveness and efficiency, improves human well-being, user satisfaction, accessibility and sustainability; and counteracts possible adverse effects of use on human health, safety and performance.4 We cannot guess another person's thoughts and needs, but we can ask about it and apply verified methods to bring it out. There are many techniques of user research that are designed to gain as much information as possible about the user's needs, which allows us to tailor the product design even better. Research and consequently defining a specific problem/need should be the initial phase of every design process. Without knowledge about the given environment and potential users, unfortunately, we will not design a good product or service. My practical part is focused on the design of morphology test results that are incomprehensible and unreadable to users such as patients. For this purpose, I conducted research on different groups including patients, doctors, medical specialists and business advisors to learn more about the problem. The research done on the respondents and the currently available solutions on the market is the basis of my design. The final result of the whole process will be an application for mobile devices, which is to serve as a tool for archiving and imagining the morphological examination results for patients and doctors. With the help of a well-conducted research phase and analysis, the designing tool is able to change the unpleasant process of collecting, archiving and reading the test results into a much simpler and more pleasant one for the user. This approach to the process of design based on patients' needs and struggles can not only give us a tool to work with, but really affect the quality of our daily lives. A patient who knows his results and can read them is much more aware of his health than one who cannot read his/her results. Increasing awareness and interest in morphological testing can be a big step in promoting a healthy and balanced lifestyle and improving our quality of life.