Experience

Experience is a key aspect in all interactive design pieces as it is majorly highlighted in design philosophy. In philosophy experience underlies within our sub consciousness, it collectively creates our likes and dislikes outlining our aesthetics. Although our own personal experiences will dictate how we react to an interactive piece, in order for it to be effective it needs to provide an interesting and positive environment accessible for the majority of personalities.

How does effective interaction design provide people with a successful and satisfying experience?

• Effective interactive pieces should be visually obvious, yet maintain a suspense that invigorates the user

• They should be engaged but also grasp the concept of the works with ease

• Users should not be concerned or involved with the inner workings of the piece

• Minimal effort should be required in order for the piece to be fully functional

- Understanding of Users

For an interactive installation to be allegeable the users must have a developed understanding without supervision or information being provided.

- Effective Design Process

If the design process during research is developed systematically then the outcome will be potentially free flowing and clear, allowing the user to become immersed in the interactivity.

- Manageable

The piece must be managed simply and should not require constant supervision for full functionality, this allows the user to connect with the piece on a more personal level .

- Aesthetic Experience

In order for the user to be immersed in the experience it must hold aesthetic qualities. Aesthetics create a more durable experience and allows users to connect with the piece on a sub conscious level. Aesthetics in an interactive piece allow us to act naturally and submerge ourselves within the concept, this therefore should not require any thought or judgment from the user create his or her experience.

- Appropriate

An interactive piece should be engaging for all audiences, it should not disengage any cultures etc. It should stand by ethical requirements and consider social, cultural, economical and technical aspects.

- Learnable / Useable

The piece should be simple to use, and be useable for any individual, users should not have to be instructed on how the interactive piece involves them, they should instantly adapt and involve them.

- Needed

The topic presented should be of importance and relevant, it must be conceptual and provide a purpose as to why it should be interacted with.

- Mutable

It should be catered for and engage all types of audience, it should not single out, or have a required target audience.

Experiences and Interaction

How we define an experience is entirely dependent on our personal perception and emotional connection to what we are interacting with. Experience is a key factor in interaction, and it should be considered in two ways;

- The existent emotional experience- The created emotional experience

Every user will create their own experience from an interactive piece, even though they are provided with the same basic information and tools.

It is hard to clearly state what in fact causes an emotional reaction, but an obviously statement to make is that it is directly linked to an experience or connection we have with the related emotion. Psychologist Brian Parkinson states that emotional experience is separated into four factors;

- An external stimulus or situation, which is considered the key factor.

- How the body reacts to a given situation, for example, arousal or fear.

- Our facial expression in the situation.

- Our reaction and action tendencies, for example, advancing in a threatening way shows anger, or retreating suggests fear.

Personal experience will define how we react in certain situations, whether it is a good or bad experience.

An experience can be defined as a knowledge that is gained through involvement with an event, be it physical or conceptual.

Emotions are triggered by our prior knowledge, this can branch out and effect situations we encounter.

“Emotions and feelings are not a luxury, they are a means of communicating our state of mind to others. But they are also a way of guiding our own judgments and decisions. Emotions being the body into the loop of reason”

(Damasio – ‘Descarted Error: Emotion, Reason and the Human Brain’ 1994)