Post on 06-Dec-2014
description
#twobrains
two brains, one head
Maria CordellDesign DirectorAdaptive Pathmaria@adaptivepath.com
@mcordell#twobrains
Analysis and Intuition in Design Practice
#twobrains
#twobrains
#twobrains
photo source: @michaelbierut
“Most processes leave out the stuff no one
wants to talk about:
magic, intuition and leaps of
faith.”
photo source: info@marceckardt.de
“[intuition] is not the only ingredient in design, but possibly the most important.
Schools tend to discount intuition as an ingredient of your working process because they can't quantify it.”
David CarsonMichael Bierut
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WTF intuition?
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#twobrains
more analysis!
rational!
reliable!
proven!
logical!
systematic!
predictable!
scientific!
#twobrains
#twobrains
more intuition!
inspired!
innovative!forward
thinking!
inventive!
insightful!
disruptive!
unsystematic!
#twobrains
more analysis!
more intuition!
rational!
reliable!
proven!
logical!
systematic!inspired!
innovative!forward
thinking!
inventive!
insightful!
disruptive!
unsystematic!
predictable!
scientific!
#twobrains
#twobrains
analysis intuition
#twobrains
analysis intuition+
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“We must use both types of thinking, be able to turn off the rational brain at times, and revel in the chaos. At other times, we must tune out the chaos and think rationally.
The responsive, creative designer must be an ambidextrous thinker. Such a person, capable of dealing effectively with both intuition and logic, is centered and able to think holistically and integratively.”
John Motloch
#twobrains
analysis intuition
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intuitionanalysis
We know analysis...
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• 2x2s• affinity diagram• analytics / metrics• backcasting• card sorting• competitive analysis• comparative analysis• content audit• content inventory• content modeling• controlled vocabulary• expert review
• flow diagrams• GOMS analysis• heuristic analysis• information architecture• journey maps• kano analysis• mental models• metadata schema• navigation diagrams• pattern libraries• prototypes• requirements
• scenarios• sketching• surveys• task analysis• taxonomies• usability studies• use cases• validation testing• wireframes
analysis
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analysis
What is intuition, really?
intuition
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“a way of knowing and deciding that is distinct from and complements logical analysis”
“to some, a sudden flash of insight, or even the spiritual experience of discovering a hidden truth”
Daniel Simons & Christopher Chabris
intuition
Towards a Definition
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2 types of Intuition
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Intuition asTacit Knowledge1#
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Intuition is non-conscious stuff
the brain does for us.*
* Mysterious only insofar as the way our brains work is mysterious.
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It’s rapid understanding shown by individuals,
usually experts, when they face problems
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Sources of Power: How People Make DecisionsGary Klein
• Intuition grows out of experience
• The power of intuition lets us size up a situation quickly
• Intuition depends on the use of experience to recognize key patterns that indicate the dynamics of the situation
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Patterns!
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Intuition is a storehouse of patterns and knowledge
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Intuition asInsight2#
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Insight is the realm of non-linear thinking,
the process that brings forth “hidden truths”
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It’s work the subconscious mind does on our behalf, for
the conscious mind to work out in detail
Adapted from Advances in Simulation: The Interplay of Inspiration, Intuition, Abstraction, and Experimentation by James R. Wilson
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The Cosmic Code: Quantum Physics as the Language of NatureHeinz Pagels
• Intuition is a non-rational but verifiable aspect of scientific creativity
• Absolute postulates transcend experience
• Intuition is an “inspired guess” that leads to absolute postulates or hypotheses
• It’s how Albert Einstein discovered that gravity is geometry—the central conclusion of the theory of general relativity
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“For the creation of a theory, the mere collection of recorded phenomena never suffices—there must always be added a free invention of the human mind that attacks at the heart of the matter.”
Albert Einsteinin The Cosmic Code
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Adapted from Exposing the Magic of Design by Jon Kolko
datadatadata
synthesis,intuitive leaps,
abduction
insightsfacts andunderstanding
inspection & analysis
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Tacit Knowledge1#Insight2#
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intuitivemachine
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abst
ract
conc
rete
intuition
practice
research
expertiseanalysis
domain knowledge
designprinciples
empathy
curiosity
imagination
creativity playfulness
common sense
reflection
improvisation
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reports / prior research
trends & analytics
stakeholder & user interviews• understanding• connections• insights• new ideas
reflection& synthesis
inspection & analysis
intuitivemachine
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ProjectStart
ProjectEnd
analysis intuition
time
activ
ity
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analysis intuition
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analysis
intuition tacitknowledge
insight
• reflective• expert synthesis of conditions & data• indirectly traceable• inferred connections• nonlinear; discontinuous• abductive
• methodical• logical• controlled• direct; explicit• conscious• “scientific”
• skill-based• internalized• indirect; implicit• subconscious• pattern oriented• multi-faceted
• descriptive• logical path from situation to outcome • directly traceable • deductive and inductive
• responsive• expert pattern matching of situation to
response• linear; continuous
#twobrains
analysis intuition
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analysis intuition
empathyUX practice
happenshere
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thanks!
Maria CordellDesign DirectorAdaptive Pathmaria@adaptivepath.com
@mcordell#twobrains