UX dilemma’s. Source: Razum / shutterstock

The ultimate UX dilemma

When you work within the user experience design field, ultimately you will come across this single ongoing dilemma, the one question which is rock solid embedded in the foundation of everything that is UX. You might be wondering, am I going to discuss tools, methods, research? No, none of that, even though at times those seem prevalent in most of the (online) discussions I witness. What I truly want to discuss and get your opinion on, is what I consider to be the ultimate UX dilemma, which is:

“Does the user guide the design, or does the design guide the user?”

This question may seem a bit trivial at first, because “user” naturally is derived from the verb “to use” so it must be the first one, right? But is this true? Isn’t the technology a factor on its own within this dilemma? Can anyone truly say that his behavior isn’t influenced by technology and design? Then again, does a design and technology have any value without a user to benefit from it? So that’s why in my opinion this is the ultimate dilemma for all UX designers to contemplate.

The user leads

Of course, isn’t this the whole idea of User experience? Shouldn’t we design technology that fills the need of the user? It’s what got this movement going in the first place, as we know by now that when something functions technically, it doesn’t necessarily benefits the user. So it’s got to be the user who decides in the end how something is designed, right? Well yes, however this is only partly true, there are some problems when only focusing on what the user wants.

1. First of all, who is “the user”, it is very hard to design something that fills the need of everyone. Needs and opinions on what is needed are divers and it’s impossible to please all. Furthermore, opinions of users sometimes out right contradict each other, so in the end it is still the designer who has to decide which opinion is valued the most.
2. Also, sometimes technology does exactly what a user desires, a design works perfect from a user perspective, however the long-term end result is not in the best interest of the user. Take for example an automobile, for most users it works perfectly fine, however it also allows a user to make wrong decisions, for example unsafe driving resulting annually in more than 1,25 million traffic deaths worldwide. Not to mention the pollution automobiles cause. So a good working design isn’t necessarily good in a broader perspective.
3. There is also a big assumption that the user always “knows” what is best, but in reality, a lot of the users don’t have a clue. I’ve seen it a lot of times that during user testing all opinions where pointing towards option A, while option B performed way better in A/B testing. So how can a user know something, that he doesn’t yet know? Like the famous quote made by Henry Ford: ““If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses”. There is also a famous interview (Dutch) done in Amsterdam in 1998 by Frans Bromet, asking people their need for a mobile phone. See video with some subtitles added.

So, we can safely conclude that the user in many cases, cannot be solely trusted to lead the way to the best design decision. There is still a lot of responsibility with the UX designer to make sense of it all and to filter all input from users to back up possible design decisions.

The design leads

Does this than mean that we should just go ahead and base design decision solely on the available technology and focus only on if it functions technically? Well innovation sure is a Pandora’s box, once it is open it is hard to close. But should we bluntly implement all that is available into our human society? In my opinion this is very tricky, as it is very hard for us the contemplate all aspects of technological innovation up front, we cannot oversee all the positive and negative impacts technology has before it is released. So, it seems wise to at least keep some restraints on the implementation of new designs or new technology.

1. As mentioned earlier it is hard to contemplate the actual impact of a new design, a new feature or functionality and even harder to understand the impact of newly available innovative technology. There is always a risk of undesired effects for users, or in broader perspective society. Relying fully on design and technology and not taking into account the potential negative effect it has on users is pretty unethical in my opinion.
2. In addition, how do we know that technology and design is used for the benefit of the user? I wrote a popular article a few years ago on “the dark side of UX” how dark patterns aim only at conversion and don’t really focus on what is best for the user. So, it is rather idealistic and probably also naïve that design and technology are solely created for the benefit of all mankind, as it could be misused for personal gain.
3. Even if potential negative impacts are addressed and we are sure the design isn’t used for personal gain, a design can still be very far off from what a user needs or is able to use. Create things that function technically, could be useful for a small population, but are most likely unusable for the masses.

There are some risks with leading with design even when the design is an improvement (on productivity for example) and based on insights by the user. Just the fact that it’s a new design / pattern can cause some frustration with the user because they are used to doing things in a certain way. Some times breaking old habits need to be done in order for the design to be adopted and that carries the risk of users unwilling to adapt to these changes even if they are for the better. Once the benefit of change is clear to the user the assumption is that adoption will come eventually as that is how innovation is done. However, keep in mind that assumptions are always risky in our line of business.

Balance

In my opinion it all comes down to balance, and that is why the UX dilemma never needs to be solved one way or the other. In the end I am a firm believer in the mediation theory of Dutch Technology Philosopher Peter Paul Verbeek, which states that Technology and User always influence each other.

So, when it comes to design we must not choose a side for either the user or the technology, but we have the responsibility to create a fine balance which act in the best interest for all, not only in the best interest of the individual user. But also, the broader perspective must be taken into account. We can for sure use nudges to urge the user to display the desired behavior. The really hard part is to define, what is the desired behavior and why is that behavior desirable? This all depends on purpose and we as designers have a big responsibility to figure out these questions and create a balance where the user needs are considered as well as the desired broader perspective.

But what I’m most curious about is your opinion on this matter, do we solely focus on the user, or do we let technology lead? Or is it a matter of balancing both to get the desired outcome.

Hope you enjoyed this ! Let me know your thoughts in the comments