Designers: mind your language
In 2016, i’ll be thinking more about the words I use
Earlier this year Julie Zhou wrote a great article here on Medium about Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg’s desire to move away from the the word ‘user’ to describe the people that they design for.
Thinking about the words we use everyday in a design process is important; words have power and often reveal a lot about our deeper attitudes. Studies show that the words we use have a direct effect on both the way we behave and our ability to build empathy.
But, the focus on the word user might be missing a bigger point: what about the other words we use when defining a design challenge? When we’re designing to change behaviour how does the language we use affect how we relate to the people we’re designing for?
In fact, I think that the word user might be least important part of the language we use. As one of the people that Facebook is referring to I have no problem being called a ‘user’. As someone who uses Facebook it actually seems entirely appropriate.
When we analyse the nouns we use to define challenges, it also draws attention to the verbs we use. And verbs are powerful things.
Designing Verbs not Nouns
At IDEO we talk about designing verbs not nouns. It’s an important distinction for us: we’re company that moved from a world where clients would ask us to design a mouse (noun), now to designing how people move (verb) around a city.
It’s no longer important what an object is, it only matters what it does. As example the device you’re reading this article on might be called a ‘phone’ but the range of functions that it can carry out goes far beyond just making an receiving phone calls.
If design is increasingly about the verbs rather than the nouns we will spend more time design to change behaviour. If the thing you’re designing is behaviour, what considerations should you make?
Designing Verbs = Changing Behaviour
Whichever noun you choose to describe people — users, commuters, customers or patients — when you’re designing to change behaviour it’s vital to recognise the power you’re exerting.
How important are words? Well here are a few typical design challenges, they’re not from real projects but they could easily be:
– How might we engage customers in advanced features?
– How might we change patients feelings about adherence?
– How might we allow users to learn more online?
– How might we encourage people to participate in the community?
– How might we enable families to access shared mobility services?
All questions that have probably been asked by designers in projects throughout 2015. But do we stop to think about the power in the words we use? Would it feel as comfortable if we used different verbs?
– How might we make customers use advanced features?
– How might we manipulate patients feelings about adherence?
– How might we require users to learn more online?
– How might we trick people to participate in the community?
– How might we force families to access shared mobility services?
It is of course very uncomfortable to see phrases like that, and certainly not the way that most designers would like to be seen by the outside world. But it highlights the power of the words we use and says a lot our empathy and consideration for people.
Empathy
Of course what Zuckerberg and Zhou’s thoughts are really drawing attention to the need for empathy for the people you’re design for, and a little more empathy is always a good thing.
Empathy should be seen as a vital source of inspiration and direction for your work, every designer should be aiming to increase it. The good news it can start with something as simple as rewording your next brainstorm question.
My new rule: imagine your users/people are in the room with you when you phase your next design challenge. How would they feel when they hear the words you’re using?
So if 2015 was the year that some previous advocates of human centred design lost their way, lets hope 2016 is the year of empathy in design.
