User-Centered Design

Foundations

User-Centered Design (UCD)

A design approach that places users' needs, goals, and context at the center of every design decision.

Why UCD

Designing around real user needs produces products that are more usable, useful, and satisfying, reducing costly rework.

Iterative Design

Designing in cycles of research, design, prototype, and test, refining based on feedback.

Usability

How effectively, efficiently, and satisfyingly users can achieve their goals with a product.

Research

User Research

Gathering insight into users' needs, behaviors, and context through interviews, observation, and surveys.

Contextual Inquiry

Observing users in their real environment to understand how they actually work.

User Needs and Goals

Understanding what users are trying to accomplish and why, to guide design.

Task Analysis

Breaking down the tasks users perform to design support for them effectively.

Modeling Users

Personas

Research-based archetypes of target users that keep design grounded in real needs.

Scenarios

Narratives describing how a persona uses the product to achieve a goal.

User Journey

A map of the stages, actions, and emotions a user experiences, revealing pain points.

Mental Model

The user's understanding of how something works, which the design should align with.

Principles

Usability Heuristics

General principles (e.g., visibility of status, consistency, error prevention) for usable design.

Consistency

Using familiar, consistent patterns so users can transfer knowledge and feel confident.

Feedback and Visibility

Keeping users informed about system status and the results of their actions.

Error Prevention and Recovery

Designing to prevent mistakes and to help users recover easily when they occur.

Accessibility

Designing so people with a range of abilities can use the product effectively.

Design

Information Architecture

Organizing and structuring content so users can find and understand it.

Interaction Design

Designing how users interact with a product — flows, controls, and behavior.

Prototyping & Testing

Prototyping

Creating low- or high-fidelity models to explore and communicate designs and get feedback.

Usability Testing

Observing real users attempting tasks to find and fix usability problems.

Iterate on Feedback

Refining the design based on test findings, repeating until it meets user needs.