How can we help people begin making a change in behavior?

“Understanding is important, but it’s only the beginning. It’s got to lead to a change in behavior. The question interaction designers need to ask ourselves, then, is this: how can our work help people to not only understand the change needed, but also to begin making it?” – Tom Igoe

Tom’s quote is from a panel he and Robert Fabricant were on that discussed sustainable interaction design. Robert cited this quote in his IxDA Interaction 9 video “Behavior is our Medium.”

Thanks to Dave Malouf for pointing me to this video!

1. The behavior you’re seeing is the behavior you’ve designed for
2. We need to observe behavior in order to support it in design
3. Stop solving interaction design problems and begin solving problems with design
4. Interaction design finds ways to better connect people
5. Designers must consider unseen elements such as social relationships, power dynamics, and cultural rules