Once Upon A Time, I Wrote My First Hello World

We all strive to become experts in our chosen field. But often, when we become experts, it becomes hard to “unlearn” and look at other perspectives. In this presentation, we’ll talk about the so-called Curse of Knowledge. Curse of Knowledge is a cognitive bias that many professionals face. This affects the way we design our products and communicate with our colleagues because we assume the knowledge of other people. This affects the user experience because if you cannot put yourself in your user’s shoes, then you are not designing for them.

Yes, you know the ins and outs of your products, but have you considered the needs of your first-time users? When working with your colleagues, do you use language that can be easily understood? If you use jargon, this may present a communication gap. In this presentation, we will tackle the importance of usability testing, inclusive design, empathy, and welcoming new perspectives. We will also discuss how our Visual Design team at the Office of Digital Learning conducted usability testing for the University of Arizona’s Adobe & Arizona website.

Slides