Don Norman
Founder of UX concepts who brought 'user-centered design' into mainstream consciousness
Don Norman is a cognitive scientist, design researcher, and author of The Design of Everyday Things. He brought cognitive science into product design, introducing core design concepts like affordance, mapping, and feedback. During his time at Apple as User Experience Architect, he is credited with coining the term 'user experience.' His central argument: when users make errors, the fault lies with the design, not the user.
Methodologies
- User-Centered Design Process - Place user research at the core of the design process, validating design decisions with real user feedback at every stage.
- Affordance and Signifier Design Audit - Systematically examine the affordances of every interactive element in a product, ensuring its physical or visual form accurately communicates the correct way of use.
Key decisions and timeline
- 1966-09 Joined UC San Diego, Established Cognitive Science Department - Establishing a new discipline requires courage to break traditional disciplinary boundaries, but interdisciplinary integration often produces the most important insights.
- 1988-04 Published The Design of Everyday Things - Making professional knowledge accessible and illustrating it with everyday examples is the most effective way to influence practitioners.
- 1993-01 Joined Apple, Credited with Coining 'User Experience' - Naming a concept can change an entire industry's way of thinking; a good name makes tacit knowledge explicit.
Beliefs and mental models
- Belief 1 - When users cannot use a product correctly, the responsibility lies with the designer, not the user. Designers cannot assume users will read manuals or have specific knowledge; good design should make correct use obvious.
- Belief 2 - Object design should communicate how to use it through its form — a door handle's shape should tell you to push or pull, a button's appearance should indicate it can be pressed. Affordance is the silent communication between design and user.
- Belief 3 - Design is not just about function and usability but also emotional experience. Three levels — attractiveness (visceral), enjoyment of use (behavioral), and personal meaning (reflective) — together determine users' overall evaluation of a product.
- Model 1
- Model 2
- Model 3