If you are wondering what the difference between Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and User Experience (UX) is, then you have come to the right place. While UX refers to the user experience you provide to your website visitors, Adobe Xd explains, “HCI is a design field that focuses on the interfaces between people and computers. It incorporates multiple disciplines, such as computer science, psychology, human factors, and ergonomics, into one field. HCI is more technical, has roots in cognitive psychology, and is generally used in academic terms. UX, on the other hand, is used more in business terms and is affected mostly by practicality. HCI tells you how the relationship between humans and computers actually work while UX provides you guidelines to make the computers friendlier to use. Let’s have a detailed look at the principles of HCI and UX to understand their practical application in a site’s design process.
Principles of HCI
Requirements Study
In HCI, you have to establish the goals for your site, keeping the target audience in mind. You need to define the need of your users and what their aim on the website is. If you already have a website, then assess it thoroughly and analyze the user data available. You will also need to do some research on your competitors to get familiar with the market. You may also have to manage focus groups in HCI.
Conceptual Proposal
You also have to provide a conceptual proposal in HCI as it allows you to build site’s architecture at an abstract level and gives you the outline for your website’s design. You also have to analyze and test the model to identify essential features.
Modeling
HCI also demands you to provide a visual representation of your website, which will help you evaluate its usability. The process of modeling should be repeated until the model has received the best possible shape.
Developing
HCI is involved at the development level as well. Once the product is finished, you will have to go through all the tests, including quality insurance and usability. Based on these tests, the final product must be improved until it is in the best shape possible.
Principles of UX
Research User Needs
UX requires you to do thorough research on your users’ needs so you can identify what your users are looking for.
Stages of Design Process
In UX, you go through multiple stages of the design process. All steps require different tools, and a designer must always be aware of the stage they are on. These stages include Sketch, Wireframe, Prototyping, and Design.
Consistency
Consistency is a vital part of the User experience process as it makes it easier for the users to get familiar with the design process making it convenient for them to navigate through your website.
Reducing Cognitive Load
When a user finds overwhelming content on a website, he can get confused quickly. UX demands you to reduce the cognitive load of the site so the user can move and perform actions freely.
Effective Error Management
The UX design process also requires you to manage errors effectively. The errors are part of the digital process and cannot be controlled; all you can do is provide them essential information whenever they have faced an error.
Author | Emily Forbes
An Entrepreneur, Mother & A passionate tech writer in the technology industry!
Email:- forbesemily@yandex.com
