Empathize by mapping user responses

Learning Goals

1. Students conduct interviews and individually record user perceptions and interactions with the environment.

2. Students collaboratively interpret audience responses through an empathy map to identify patterns, needs, and insights.

General Description

As a human-centered designer you want to empathize with the people for whom you are designing. To empathize, you:

- Observe: View users and their behavior in the context of their lives, when possible.

- Immerse: Experience what your user experiences.

- Engage: Interact with and interview users through both scheduled and short ‘intercept’ encounters.

Activity 1 (10 minute budget)

Teacher facilitates review of good facilitation techniques and has student groups define their facilitator for the next activity.

1. Teacher shows the Bad Facilitation Techniques video (start at 1:08 and play till 2:41) with a short class discussion on the opposite techniques for good facilitation, and has all groups define their facilitator for the next activity

Activity 2 (30 minute budget)

Students groups summarize their individual interview responses into a group empathy map.

1. Teacher shows the Empathy Map Guide slide on Parts of an Empathy Map and directs student group facilitators to work within teams to define a group empathy map using post-it notes based on the individual responses from their interviews. Teacher should monitor the groups to make sure that facilitators are leading by listening and seeking input from all members of the group, and that groups are separating facts (Say and Do) from interpretations (Think and Feel) on the map.

2. After they have completed transferring interview responses onto the four quadrants of the map, then show the next slide on Needs and Insights and student groups should add these to the bottom of the map.

• Bad Facilitation Video-1:08 to 2:41 (Teacher Resource)

• Empathy Guide PPT (Teacher Resource)

• Empathy Map Worksheet (Student Worksheet)