Learning how to listen
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Transcript of Learning how to listen
Learning how to listen- Kåre Stokholm Poulsgaard
Hyper IslandManchester 09.08.12
Why ethnography?
What’s happening here?
Get into a beginners frame of mind
Social anthropology: we must first discover what people actually do, and just as important why they are doing it, before we can inter-pret their behaviors drawing on our own experiences
Design: It’s about asking the right questions in order to frame and gain a deeper understanding of the problems to solve from a people centered perspective
Ethnography...
People
Behaviours
Attitudes
Beliefs
Needs
Boundaries
Relationships
Ethnography is about
Applying abstract reasoning to real life observations
Iterate and refine your concept
Doing ethnography- step by step Identify your research objectives
Keep it people centered, keep it broad enough that you’ll learn something new but focused enough for your to be able to build empathy and find insights
Identify who to talk toDifferent user segments will have different perspectives - choosing the right people to talk to is key to finding valauble insights
Write an interview guideCome prepared - but be ready to deviate from the plan and pursue interesting themes as they show up in conversation
Discover the world a newBuild real empathy with your users as you explore your ideas and concepts
Analyse your dataLook for patterns in observations and stories - identify the abstract principles shaping these patterns and driving behaviours
Identifying who to talk to
Writing your interviewguide Start broad and narrow down if you’re in the disco-
very phase – start narrow and go broad if you’re looking to test and validate your ideas
Start soft – learn something about the person – let them describe themselves to you and make sure they feel your genuine interest – chat, go broad on attitudes and dreams and then dive deep
Use grand tour questions to let the participant draw up a landscape for you – then probe using their words and concepts
Make it concrete – abstract questions are very hard for people to answer in anything but vague terms – ”Describe the last time you went to the hospital” – have people bring homework – use hypothetical situations
The Ethnographic Interview Keep it friendly
Keep the conversation relaxed and free flowing while subtly guiding the direction and subject
Ask loads of questions and downplay your personal knowledgePledge ignorance - restate informants assumptions and begin using their language
Look for contradictions and comparisons Contrast questions lets you explore deeper dimensions of meaning shaping or structuring people’s beliefs
Mix in observationsPeoples idea about what they do and what they actually do might not always match up - use discrepancies to learn more about beliefs, attitudes, and actions
Record – tape, use video, write, take picturesCapture direct quotes for context - capture first and interpret later
What to do with your data? Analysis and synthesis
From observations through stories to insights
Analysis and Synthesis Wants and needs
”If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses”
Avoid 1:1 interpretationsMove from real life observations to abstract principles guiding behaviour
From Observations to Insights
Resources”The Ethnographic Interview” (1979)by James Spradley
”HCD Toolkit”by IDEO
”Future Perfect”Jan Chipchase’s blog
”Design Anthropology” (2011)(eds.) Alison Clarke
”Designing Interactions” (2007)by Bill Moggridge
THANK YOU!Feel free to get in touch [email protected]
FiguresMorten Lundholm, LESNaja Rasmussen, Theory and Practice