Short answer
When designing for social or political impact, expand your persona development to explore users' values, beliefs, and aspirations, not just their functional requirements.
- Field
- User-Centred Design
- Source
- Persona Studies (2018)
- Method
- Qualitative user research and persona development, informed by phenomenographic analysis.
- Evidence
- Moderate effect
Personas can be more effectively developed for socially-oriented design projects by focusing on users' political aspirations and social values, rather than solely on traditional needs and goals. This user-centred design research insight is drawn from a 2018 study published in Persona Studies. Using Qualitative user research and persona development, informed by phenomenographic analysis., researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: When designing for social or political impact, expand your persona development to explore users' values, beliefs, and aspirations, not just their functional requirements.
Beyond User Needs: Personas for Social and Political Impact
Personas can be more effectively developed for socially-oriented design projects by focusing on users' political aspirations and social values, rather than solely on traditional needs and goals.
Persona Studies · 2018
Key Findings
- 01Traditional persona focus on needs and goals can be limiting for socially-oriented design.
- 02Incorporating political aspirations and social values into personas can lead to more impactful designs.
- 03Phenomenographic analysis is a suitable method for uncovering and representing these deeper user values.
Application
Design takeaway
When designing for social or political impact, expand your persona development to explore users' values, beliefs, and aspirations, not just their functional requirements.
How to apply
When starting a design project focused on social change or civic engagement, conduct in-depth interviews that probe users' beliefs about society, their political views, and their aspirations for collective action. Use these insights to build personas that reflect these dimensions.
Project actions
- 01When creating personas for a social impact project, ask questions that reveal users' values and political leanings.
- 02Consider using qualitative analysis techniques like thematic analysis or grounded theory to identify patterns in user beliefs.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Addresses a critical gap in traditional persona methodology for specific design contexts.
- +Provides empirical evidence from real-world projects.
- +Suggests a concrete methodological approach (phenomenography).
Limitations
It can be challenging to accurately capture and represent complex political beliefs and social values without oversimplification or stereotyping. Ensuring ethical data collection and representation is paramount.
Reliability & validity
Reliability could be improved by using multiple researchers to analyze user data and develop personas. Validity is supported by the empirical evidence from two large-scale projects, but the generalizability to all contexts may be limited.
Think critically
Consider the potential for designs that focus on social and political values to inadvertently create division or exclude certain user groups. How can designers mitigate these risks while still pursuing impactful social change?
Design Principles
"Design for social impact by understanding and representing users' values and political aspirations."
Traditional persona development often prioritizes functional needs, which can be insufficient when designing for social or political impact. By incorporating users' values and beliefs, designers can create more resonant and effective solutions that align with broader societal goals and encourage user engagement.
What This Means for Your Design
When you're designing something to help people with social issues or to get them involved in politics, don't just think about what they need to do. Think about what they believe in, what they hope for society, and what they want to change.
How to use in your project
- 1.Reference this study when justifying your choice to create personas that go beyond basic user needs, especially in projects with a social or political dimension.
- 2.Use the findings to explain how understanding user values can lead to more impactful design solutions.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
Paragraph starter
The development of user personas for this design project was informed by research suggesting that for socially-oriented design, a focus beyond mere user needs is crucial. As De Paoli et al. (2018) highlight, incorporating users' political aspirations and social values can lead to more impactful and resonant designs. Consequently, this project's persona creation process included in-depth exploration of these dimensions to ensure a holistic understanding of the target users and to guide the design towards meaningful social outcomes.
Source
Persona Studies
Creating personas for political and social consciousness in HCI design
journal · 2018
View sourceQuestions About This Research
- What does the research say about beyond user needs: personas for social and political impact?
- When designing for social or political impact, expand your persona development to explore users' values, beliefs, and aspirations, not just their functional requirements. Evidence: Persona Studies (2018).
- Why does "Beyond User Needs: Personas for Social and Political Impact" matter for design?
- Traditional persona development often prioritizes functional needs, which can be insufficient when designing for social or political impact. By incorporating users' values and beliefs, designers can create more resonant and effective solutions that align with broader societal goals and encourage user engagement.
- How can designers apply this research?
- When designing for social or political impact, expand your persona development to explore users' values, beliefs, and aspirations, not just their functional requirements.
- What were the main findings?
- Traditional persona focus on needs and goals can be limiting for socially-oriented design.. Incorporating political aspirations and social values into personas can lead to more impactful designs.. Phenomenographic analysis is a suitable method for uncovering and representing these deeper user values.
- What research method was used?
- Qualitative user research and persona development, informed by phenomenographic analysis..
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Moderate effect, based on a 2018 journal from Persona Studies.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- When starting a design project focused on social change or civic engagement, conduct in-depth interviews that probe users' beliefs about society, their political views, and their aspirations for collective action. Use these insights to build personas that reflect these dimensions.
- What are the limitations?
- The effectiveness of this approach may vary depending on the specific project's goals and the cultural context of the users. The phenomenographic approach requires careful application to avoid misinterpretation.