UXmatters has published 9 articles on the topic Service Experiences.
This is a sample chapter from Andrew Hinton’s new book, Understanding Context: Environment, Language, and Information Architecture, in which he explores the principles and processes that shape and change context for users. Chapter 21, “Narratives and Situations,” is one of the chapters from the book’s final segment on “Composing Context.”
The Universe is made of stories, not of atoms.—Muriel Rukeyser
Before composing something new we should understand what is already there. But we’ve already established that there is no stable, persistent “context” to begin with—that it emerges through action. So, how do we understand the current state if it won’t sit still? The key is in studying the experience from the points of view of the agents involved and how they think and behave. Those points of view provide the dynamic landscape—and the principles we derive from it—that puts everything else into perspective. These agents can be individual users, groups of them, organizations, and even digital actors. Let’s begin with how humans work—and how they understand their experience as narrative. Recall our working definition: context is an agent’s understanding of the relationships between the elements of the agent’s environment. Read More
Recent months have brought an extraordinary number of simultaneous crises—from the global pandemic of COVID-19 to high unemployment and economic uncertainty to systemic social injustices. Any one of these events alone would be destabilizing. Taken together, they place individuals and societies under unprecedented strain.
More than ever, empathy matters. More than ever, user experiences matter. Even as some states and countries lift restrictions relating to COVID-19, for the foreseeable future, we’ll have significant limitations on our personal interactions and experience potential challenges in meeting our foundational needs. As many essential activities have, by necessity, gone online or transitioned to virtual formats, UX designers now have a unique role to play in the changes occurring in the everyday lives of millions of people. With that power comes responsibility. Read More
A few weeks ago, I visited my husband’s grandmother in her retirement community. We had been there several times before, but our most recent visit made me appreciate her situation more. After having read numerous news stories about elder abuse, fraud, and deplorable living and healthcare conditions in nursing homes, I found her community to be quite the opposite.
It’s important to mention that her community offers a mix of living situations, depending on a resident’s health and preferences. There are single-family homes for people who still want some autonomy—and can afford them—but most people reside in the large, mansion-like, main building. Residents and couples have their own apartment, which they can customize and decorate according to their wishes. Visiting nurses help sick patients in their homes. However, for those who are debilitated or need physical therapy, there’s a healthcare wing of the building that essentially functions as a hospital. Read More