The Design of Everyday Things
Encyclopedia
The Design of Everyday Things is a best-selling book by cognitive scientist and usability engineer Donald Norman
about the design
of simple objects, and why some objects please their users while others frustrate them.
The book was published in 1988 with the title The Psychology of Everyday Things. Norman said his academic peers liked that title, but believed the new title better conveyed the content of the book and better attracted interested readers. It is often referred to by the initialisms POET and DOET.
Norman uses case studies to describe the psychology behind what he deems good and bad design
, and proposes design principles. The book spans several disciplines including behavioral psychology, ergonomics
, and design practice.
by taking a more perceptual approach.
He also popularized the term user-centered design
, which he had previously referred to in User Centered System Design in 1986. He used the term to describe design based on the needs of the user, leaving aside what he deemed secondary issues like aesthetics
. User-centered design involves simplifying the structure of tasks, making things visible, getting the mapping right, exploiting the powers of constraint, designing for error, explaining affordance
s and seven stages of action
.
Other topics of the book include:
An entire chapter of the book discusses the design of door handle
s.
After a group of industrial designers felt affronted after reading an early draft, Norman rewrote the book to make it more sympathetic to their profession.
Donald Norman
Donald Arthur Norman is an academic in the field of cognitive science, design and usability engineering and a co-founder and consultant with the Nielsen Norman Group. He is the author of the book The Design of Everyday Things....
about the design
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
of simple objects, and why some objects please their users while others frustrate them.
The book was published in 1988 with the title The Psychology of Everyday Things. Norman said his academic peers liked that title, but believed the new title better conveyed the content of the book and better attracted interested readers. It is often referred to by the initialisms POET and DOET.
Norman uses case studies to describe the psychology behind what he deems good and bad design
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
, and proposes design principles. The book spans several disciplines including behavioral psychology, ergonomics
Ergonomics
Ergonomics is the study of designing equipment and devices that fit the human body, its movements, and its cognitive abilities.The International Ergonomics Association defines ergonomics as follows:...
, and design practice.
Contents
Norman extended James J. Gibson's concept of physical affordanceAffordance
An affordance is a quality of an object, or an environment, which allows an individual to perform an action. For example, a knob affords twisting, and perhaps pushing, while a cord affords pulling...
by taking a more perceptual approach.
He also popularized the term user-centered design
User-centered design
In broad terms, user-centered design or pervasive usability is a design philosophy and a process in which the needs, wants, and limitations of end users of a product are given extensive attention at each stage of the design process...
, which he had previously referred to in User Centered System Design in 1986. He used the term to describe design based on the needs of the user, leaving aside what he deemed secondary issues like aesthetics
Aesthetics
Aesthetics is a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste, and with the creation and appreciation of beauty. It is more scientifically defined as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste...
. User-centered design involves simplifying the structure of tasks, making things visible, getting the mapping right, exploiting the powers of constraint, designing for error, explaining affordance
Affordance
An affordance is a quality of an object, or an environment, which allows an individual to perform an action. For example, a knob affords twisting, and perhaps pushing, while a cord affords pulling...
s and seven stages of action
Seven stages of action
Seven stages of action is a term coined by the usability consultant Donald Norman.He explains this phrase in chapter two of his book The Design of Everyday Things, in the context of explaining the psychology of a person behind the task performed by him or her.- History :The history behind the...
.
Other topics of the book include:
- The Psychopathology of Everyday Things
- The Psychology of Everyday Actions
- Knowledge in the Head and in the World
- Knowing What to Do
- To Err Is Human
- The Design Challenge
An entire chapter of the book discusses the design of door handle
Door handle
A door handle is an attached mechanism used to open or close a door. In the United States, door handle can refer to any fixed or lever-operated door latch device, including on car doors. The term door knob tends to refer to round operating mechanisms.-History:The first documented invention of the...
s.
After a group of industrial designers felt affronted after reading an early draft, Norman rewrote the book to make it more sympathetic to their profession.
See also
- Emotional DesignEmotional DesignEmotional Design is both the title of a book by Donald Norman and of the concept it represents. The main issue is that emotions have a crucial role in the human ability to understand the world, and how they learn new things. For example: aesthetically pleasing objects appear to the user to be more...
- AffordanceAffordanceAn affordance is a quality of an object, or an environment, which allows an individual to perform an action. For example, a knob affords twisting, and perhaps pushing, while a cord affords pulling...
- Seven stages of actionSeven stages of actionSeven stages of action is a term coined by the usability consultant Donald Norman.He explains this phrase in chapter two of his book The Design of Everyday Things, in the context of explaining the psychology of a person behind the task performed by him or her.- History :The history behind the...
- User-centered designUser-centered designIn broad terms, user-centered design or pervasive usability is a design philosophy and a process in which the needs, wants, and limitations of end users of a product are given extensive attention at each stage of the design process...
- Interaction designInteraction designIn design, human–computer interaction, and software development, interaction design, often abbreviated IxD, is "the practice of designing interactive digital products, environments, systems, and services." Like many other design fields interaction design also has an interest in form but its main...
External links
- The Design of Everyday Things — Review at Usabilitypost.com