Design plays a vital role in assistive technology, so why are the people they are designed to help rarely consulted at the design stage? In 2021 a report (UK) on those with chronic conditions revealed that among the six barriers to people using assistive technology products, design was a key factor -
- “including lack of user and therapist involvement in the design process, lack of options for customising it, high purchase and maintenance costs, and not being easy to use. Some technologies were too big or heavy for the user to carry, or to use in their home. Others could not be used in certain environments, for example, if sunlight caused glaring on a screen.”
Another one was -
“Psychological barriers, such as a user’s previous disappointment with the technology, or the feeling that it was annoying, awkward or not appropriate for them.”
Consider how an end-user will use your assistive tech products
Also, aesthetics was key, users felt embarrassed being seen using assistive tech products in public because the solution hadn’t been thought through well enough to provide something that didn’t draw attention to the user’s disability. Naturally, with some disabilities this is unavoidable, but clever design can help avoid drawing attention to some user's disabilities if considered at an earlier stage in the design process.
This came up again in another study, this time into cerebral palsy - “Empathy-Centric Design in Assistive Technologies for Cerebral Palsy and Disabilities: Balancing Aesthetics and Functionality”
“This reluctance {stigma over design aesthetics} has been a subject of discussion in multiple academic studies, primarily focusing on the stigma associated with disabilities rather than addressing how design aesthetics can accentuate the disability. Many assistive products tend to resemble hospital equipment….”
And that -
“Semantics, aesthetics, and empathy significantly influence self-esteem, social interactions, and acceptance. Whereas universal design principles should balance accessibility with aesthetics, reducing stigmatisation.” (the two go hand in hand)
Tech designs become more useful when designers speak to users
By doing this they are better able to consider their emotions and perspectives and figure them into their designs. By interviewing, communicating and asking the right questions the designer can develop a stronger feel for an end-user experience.
What are their needs?
What would help them in daily life?
What do they struggle with?
What are their pain points?
Colours and shape may not seem like a massive concern, with an emphasis on functionality and use, but empathic consideration of the end user is crucial and helps avoid complete abandonment of the product, as was experienced by the users in the study into chronic conditions.
Human-to-human connection is crucial when designing an assistive tech product
What’s important is considering the people involved, from beginning through to the end. It is a delicate balance that requires a human-to-human (h2h) connection that must not be abandoned during the process.
"By balancing technology with empathy and understanding, businesses can not only survive but thrive in this new era."
It often feels like the human connection, empathy and the importance of story are endlessly emphasised in marketing tech products (and frustratingly, with little change seen), but a tech product, and when using this term, in this instance, I mean assistive tech products, this should be adopted within a company from the outset, from design - and by adopting a more compassionate, open and empathic approach, there would be fewer products abandoned by the end user.
For many years writers and marketers have argued how tech companies are not in tune with their customers, relying on jargon and tech terms to explain a tech product's features and benefits. It feels abundantly obvious that from the outset those who walk in the customer's shoes are naturally going to be more tuned into their needs.
It takes mastery for a CEO of a tech firm to recognise that not all their users will be as ‘tech-savvy’ as their in-house team of software and tech experts, and to ask - How do you experience the world?
That beautiful and delicate balance between technology and the human-to-human connection means that rather than being an onerous burden, the beauty, the genius and the pure imagination that it takes to create something innovative and life-changing can be explained, shown and illustrated in a way that makes perfect sense to the user.
To show the ‘thing’ you are making to an audience eager for change, who can tell you whether it's going to work or not - this is how you change lives, this is how you get your product out there, this is what spells success. And that’s for you and the people you serve.
"As you seek a balance between tech and H2H, consider how the technology helps people. Does it make life easier for both customers and employees? .........will it enable better connections?"
If you’re creating products for people then make them your priority.
"The concept of empathy means understanding what matters to customers. People must be the No. 1 consideration in a plan to acquire and implement new technology."
Isn’t it sad how rare we see tech and empathy used in the same sentence?
From the outset, and not just when you reach the marketing stage, make sure the whole team are telling the same story and that they are consistent. The vision of the company, who you’re helping and why, will provide its value and give investors and other shareholders confidence in your product’s success.
In When Form Follows Emotion in The Atlantic (rather than function) Hartmut Esslinger, who founded ‘frog,’ the global design and strategy firm in 1969, didn’t believe in form follows function because what he wanted was for form to follow emotion. And that it was important to understand the people you were designing for.
Adopting form follows empathy rather than function, tech products for those that need them most will be better designed and better suited to the people they have been created for. It seems sad to me that fifty years later, we’re still trying drive the point home, because -
"Semantics, the language of product design, significantly influences users' emotions, perceptions, self-esteem, and social interactions, underlining the crucial role of these devices in users' lives."
And by doing so we move closer to inclusivity, because better products help more people, and in turn empower them. If you don’t understand people, you can’t create anything useful for them. The perspective of the end user is essential, and by bringing them in at the design process you have more chance of success.
With artificial intelligence and the surge in the neurodivergent population, businesses in assistive technology have an opportunity to not only be successful but to truly thrive in the next few decades - all they have to do is speak to people and listen, it’s that simple.
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