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#twobrains two brains, one head Maria Cordell Design Director Adaptive Path [email protected] @mcordell #twobrains Analysis and Intuition in Design Practice

Two Brains, One Head: Analysis and Intuition in Design Practice

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Often connected to the unexplained or mysterious, intuition gets a bad rap. Yet intuition is at the heart of creativity, and significant advances in our understanding of the physical world are borne of intuitive leaps. While some hail its power, others advocate that what’s needed is more analysis — not intuition! What does this mean for us? What is intuition and why is it so divisive? And does it have a role in design?

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Page 1: Two Brains, One Head: Analysis and Intuition in Design Practice

#twobrains

two brains, one head

Maria CordellDesign DirectorAdaptive [email protected]

@mcordell#twobrains

Analysis and Intuition in Design Practice

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#twobrains

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photo source: @michaelbierut

“Most processes leave out the stuff no one

wants to talk about:

magic, intuition and leaps of

faith.”

photo source: [email protected]

“[intuition] is not the only ingredient in design, but possibly the most important.

Schools tend to discount intuition as an ingredient of your working process because they can't quantify it.”

David CarsonMichael Bierut

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WTF intuition?

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more analysis!

rational!

reliable!

proven!

logical!

systematic!

predictable!

scientific!

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more intuition!

inspired!

innovative!forward

thinking!

inventive!

insightful!

disruptive!

unsystematic!

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more analysis!

more intuition!

rational!

reliable!

proven!

logical!

systematic!inspired!

innovative!forward

thinking!

inventive!

insightful!

disruptive!

unsystematic!

predictable!

scientific!

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analysis intuition

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analysis intuition+

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“We must use both types of thinking, be able to turn off the rational brain at times, and revel in the chaos. At other times, we must tune out the chaos and think rationally.

The responsive, creative designer must be an ambidextrous thinker. Such a person, capable of dealing effectively with both intuition and logic, is centered and able to think holistically and integratively.”

John Motloch

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analysis intuition

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intuitionanalysis

We know analysis...

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• 2x2s• affinity diagram• analytics / metrics• backcasting• card sorting• competitive analysis• comparative analysis• content audit• content inventory• content modeling• controlled vocabulary• expert review

• flow diagrams• GOMS analysis• heuristic analysis• information architecture• journey maps• kano analysis• mental models• metadata schema• navigation diagrams• pattern libraries• prototypes• requirements

• scenarios• sketching• surveys• task analysis• taxonomies• usability studies• use cases• validation testing• wireframes

analysis

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analysis

What is intuition, really?

intuition

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“a way of knowing and deciding that is distinct from and complements logical analysis”

“to some, a sudden flash of insight, or even the spiritual experience of discovering a hidden truth”

Daniel Simons & Christopher Chabris

intuition

Towards a Definition

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2 types of Intuition

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Intuition asTacit Knowledge1#

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Intuition is non-conscious stuff

the brain does for us.*

* Mysterious only insofar as the way our brains work is mysterious.

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It’s rapid understanding shown by individuals,

usually experts, when they face problems

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Sources of Power: How People Make DecisionsGary Klein

• Intuition grows out of experience

• The power of intuition lets us size up a situation quickly

• Intuition depends on the use of experience to recognize key patterns that indicate the dynamics of the situation

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Patterns!

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Intuition is a storehouse of patterns and knowledge

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Intuition asInsight2#

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Insight is the realm of non-linear thinking,

the process that brings forth “hidden truths”

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It’s work the subconscious mind does on our behalf, for

the conscious mind to work out in detail

Adapted from Advances in Simulation: The Interplay of Inspiration, Intuition, Abstraction, and Experimentation by James R. Wilson

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The Cosmic Code: Quantum Physics as the Language of NatureHeinz Pagels

• Intuition is a non-rational but verifiable aspect of scientific creativity

• Absolute postulates transcend experience

• Intuition is an “inspired guess” that leads to absolute postulates or hypotheses

• It’s how Albert Einstein discovered that gravity is geometry—the central conclusion of the theory of general relativity

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“For the creation of a theory, the mere collection of recorded phenomena never suffices—there must always be added a free invention of the human mind that attacks at the heart of the matter.”

Albert Einsteinin The Cosmic Code

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Adapted from Exposing the Magic of Design by Jon Kolko

datadatadata

synthesis,intuitive leaps,

abduction

insightsfacts andunderstanding

inspection & analysis

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Tacit Knowledge1#Insight2#

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intuitivemachine

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abst

ract

conc

rete

intuition

practice

research

expertiseanalysis

domain knowledge

designprinciples

empathy

curiosity

imagination

creativity playfulness

common sense

reflection

improvisation

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reports / prior research

trends & analytics

stakeholder & user interviews• understanding• connections• insights• new ideas

reflection& synthesis

inspection & analysis

intuitivemachine

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ProjectStart

ProjectEnd

analysis intuition

time

activ

ity

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analysis intuition

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analysis

intuition tacitknowledge

insight

• reflective• expert synthesis of conditions & data• indirectly traceable• inferred connections• nonlinear; discontinuous• abductive

• methodical• logical• controlled• direct; explicit• conscious• “scientific”

• skill-based• internalized• indirect; implicit• subconscious• pattern oriented• multi-faceted

• descriptive• logical path from situation to outcome • directly traceable • deductive and inductive

• responsive• expert pattern matching of situation to

response• linear; continuous

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analysis intuition

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analysis intuition

empathyUX practice

happenshere

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thanks!

Maria CordellDesign DirectorAdaptive [email protected]

@mcordell#twobrains