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This article is close, but misses the mark. Talking about how UX researchers must grow up having more empathy sounds like an assumption that's pretty hard to ba

This article is close, but misses the mark. Talking about how UX researchers must grow up having more empathy sounds like an assumption that's pretty hard to back up, considering I can point to plenty of software engineers that got into the profession because they want to build a better world for others. I have a double degree in something that's effectively user experience. The one thing I heard in school over and over again is that when evaluating the usability of software, "you are not your user." In other words, you can never assume that your own experience with software is the same as the average user's experience. This is doubly true for software that you've written yourself, since you have an intimate understanding of the mental model that other people have to somehow acquire on their own.

djmips 6y ago
I agree with you but want to point out that "well meaning" and empathic are not the same thing.
masswerk 6y ago
I'd argue, good (let's say) usability is about communicating the/a mental model via your interface. Is your interface up to it? Is the model stringent and concise enough to be communicated just by the arrangement of elements? It's a bit like world building. (That's what Apple used to be particularly good at, once. I'd also argue, software has become quite bad at this, recently.)
- bichiliad 6y ago
  Yup, I totally agree. If you can introduce enough of the mental model to your users for them to have success with your application, you've succeeded at interface design.
brundolf 6y ago
I think the word "empathy" is an overloaded term and was the wrong one for the author's point. Some people take it to mean "the ability to care about others on a moral level", and others take it to mean "the emotional intelligence to detect and understand the nuances of another's thoughts and feelings". I believe the author was talking about the second, not the first. It's entirely possible to be an idealistic and good-hearted person without having a shred of emotional intelligence.
- filoleg 6y ago
  Thanks a ton for posting that second definition of "empathy". After battling with UX issues in the OP for a long time, I intuitively knew that there were 2 different meanings of that word (one very loaded and generic, another one way more specific and targeted), but I wasn't able to articulate the definition of the second one in my head (in a way that would make sense if I tried explaining it to another person) no matter how hard I tried. Your definition nails it perfectly and fits in a single short and simple sentence that is easily understandable by pretty much anyone AND without losing any nuance or making the definition more vague. Really appreciate you posting it here.
  - brundolf 6y ago
    Sure thing :) For what it's worth I think the morally-neutral definition you used is more technically correct, it's just that it's gotten tied up with other cultural baggage. I'm also not sure I can think of another single word that does a better job of getting across the idea, unfortunately.
- SilasX 6y ago
  It would still be wrong to say that UXers as a class have more empathy, even under that definition. The fast majority of sites feel like they're giving me a middle finger, especially on mobile, and they tend to get worse on sites that invest more in UX designers. If I pointed a camera at my phone, and showed my typical use, I could a dubious decision or unnecessary hurdle every five seconds. See my other comment: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24760150 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24760150

djmips 6y ago

I agree with you but want to point out that "well meaning" and empathic are not the same thing.

masswerk 6y ago

I'd argue, good (let's say) usability is about communicating the/a mental model via your interface. Is your interface up to it? Is the model stringent and concise enough to be communicated just by the arrangement of elements? It's a bit like world building. (That's what Apple used to be particularly good at, once. I'd also argue, software has become quite bad at this, recently.)

bichiliad 6y ago
Yup, I totally agree. If you can introduce enough of the mental model to your users for them to have success with your application, you've succeeded at interface design.

brundolf 6y ago

I think the word "empathy" is an overloaded term and was the wrong one for the author's point. Some people take it to mean "the ability to care about others on a moral level", and others take it to mean "the emotional intelligence to detect and understand the nuances of another's thoughts and feelings". I believe the author was talking about the second, not the first. It's entirely possible to be an idealistic and good-hearted person without having a shred of emotional intelligence.

filoleg 6y ago
Thanks a ton for posting that second definition of "empathy". After battling with UX issues in the OP for a long time, I intuitively knew that there were 2 different meanings of that word (one very loaded and generic, another one way more specific and targeted), but I wasn't able to articulate the definition of the second one in my head (in a way that would make sense if I tried explaining it to another person) no matter how hard I tried. Your definition nails it perfectly and fits in a single short and simple sentence that is easily understandable by pretty much anyone AND without losing any nuance or making the definition more vague. Really appreciate you posting it here.
- brundolf 6y ago
  Sure thing :) For what it's worth I think the morally-neutral definition you used is more technically correct, it's just that it's gotten tied up with other cultural baggage. I'm also not sure I can think of another single word that does a better job of getting across the idea, unfortunately.
SilasX 6y ago
It would still be wrong to say that UXers as a class have more empathy, even under that definition. The fast majority of sites feel like they're giving me a middle finger, especially on mobile, and they tend to get worse on sites that invest more in UX designers. If I pointed a camera at my phone, and showed my typical use, I could a dubious decision or unnecessary hurdle every five seconds. See my other comment: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24760150 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24760150