What Makes a Good Interaction Design?
Eduardo Ramos
Posted on March 13, 2019
Good interaction is made of many areas which overlap because: "interactions are moments of contextual gestalt and one element has a direct impact on the others".
In the same way, to create a good interaction, a designer has to consider five dimensions: words (1D), visual representations (2D), physical objects/space (3D), time (4D), and behavior (5D).
These five dimensions were first defined by a professor at London’s Royal College of Art, Gillian Crampton Smith, and a senior interaction designer, Kevin Silver.
The dimensions represent the features an interaction designer considers when they create interactions. Here’s a bit more information about each of them:
(1D) words:
Encompasses text—such as button labels—which help convey the right amount of information to users.(2D) visual representations:
The graphical elements which aid in user interaction, such as images, typography and icons.(3D) physical objects/space:
Involves the medium through which users interact with the product or service—for instance, a laptop via a mouse, or a mobile phone via fingers.(4D) time:
This relates to media that changes with time, such as animations, videos, and sounds.(5D) behavior:
Concerned with how the previous four dimensions define the interactions a product affords—for instance, how users can perform actions on a website, or how users can operate a car. Behavior also refers to how the product reacts to the users’ inputs and provides feedback.
If you as a designer account for the five dimensions stated above, you can rest assured you'll hit all the characteristics of good interaction design.
Posted on March 13, 2019
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