EMPATHIZE

Step 1
Design Thinking Model
2
• Identify
• The specific
problem your
design is intended
to solve

• Important
usability aspects
from those who
will use your
design.

Discovery can be performed through a variety of different research methods which you
will learn in this module.
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Empathize
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• Empathy is a skill
• To understand and share the same feelings that others feel
• Through empathy, we are able to put ourselves in other people's shoes
and connect with how they might be feeling about their problem,
circumstance, or situation.

• Some questions to consider:

• What is the person feeling?
• What actions or words indicate this feeling?
• Can you identify their feelings through words?
• What words would you use to describe their feelings?

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Empathize
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• Design Thinking cannot begin without a deeper understanding of
the people you are designing for.
• In order to gain those insights, it is important for you as a design
thinker to empathize with the people you’re designing for so that
you can understand their needs, thoughts, emotions and
motivations.
• The good news is that you have a wide range of methods at your
command for learning more about people.
• The even better news is this: with enough mindfulness and
experience, anyone can become a master at empathizing with
people.

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Empathize
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• In the empathize stage, your goal, as a designer, is to gain an
empathic understanding of the people you’re designing for and the
problem you are trying to solve.
• This process involves observing, engaging, and empathizing with
the people you are designing for in order to understand their
experiences and motivations, as well as immersing yourself in their
physical environment in order to have a deeper personal
understanding of the issues, needs and challenges involved.

“People ignore design that

ignores people”.
– Frank Chimero

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Empathise
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Empathize methods
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The following are our favorite Empathize methods:
• Assume a beginner’s mindset
• Ask What-How-Why
• Ask the 5 whys
• Conduct interviews with empathy
• Build empathy with analogies
• Use photo and video user-based studies
• Use personal photo and video journals
• Engage with extreme users
• Story share-and-capture
• Create journey maps

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Empathize methods
Assume a beginner’s mindset (Listen, don’t judge!)
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• Set aside assumptions is absolutely critical when it comes to
building empathy.
• As human beings, we all come with our own preconceptions,
experiences, and misconceptions; this is how we make sense of the
world around us.
• However, these can hinder our ability to build empathy. When
listening to and engaging with people, get into the habit of
suspending your own judgements and assumptions.
• You can think of it as a mental reset; assume a “blank” mindset,
free of any preconceived ideas and beliefs. Really listen attentively
to what other people are saying, and you’ll uncover much deeper
insights about how they tick as a person.

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Empathize methods
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Ask What-How-Why
• Throughout the empathize phase, you should constantly be considering the
what, how, and why of your users’ behavior.
• The what-how-why framework can help you translate your (assumption-
free) observations into more abstract user motivations.
• Divide your page into three sections and break down what you’ve observed
as follows:
• What? Refers to the details of what has happened: for example, the user took the
following actions when entering their payment details on an ecommerce website.
• How? Here you will consider how the user has completed these actions. What were
their facial expressions? Were they exerting a lot of effort? Did they seem at ease,
frustrated, or confused?
• Why? Now it’s time to make some educated guesses about the user’s motivations and
emotions as they complete these tasks.
• The more you reflect on how and why your users might behave in a certain
way, the more you can empathize with (and design for!) them.
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Empathize methods
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Conduct interviews with Immersion and observation
empathy
• It is also extremely useful to
• Constantly asking “why?” (even if
you think you already know the
observe your users in action.
answer!), asking non-binary • Observe them while they interact
questions, encouraging with the product, or problem, you
storytelling, and paying attention are trying to design for.
to nonverbal cues.
• Video them or record their screen
• One of the most important things
to bear in mind when conducting as they navigate a website.
an empathy interview is that you • Ask your users to keep their own
need to be present and photo or video journal over a
attentive.
certain time period, or while
• Don’t be distracted by taking
notes; set up a recorder or have
completing certain tasks in their
someone there to take notes for everyday lives.
you. • The advantage of this is that your
Extreme Users users aren’t so aware of being
Topic watched and may therefore act 04/11/2024
Empathize methods
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Empathy maps
• “a collaborative visualization used to articulate what
we know about a particular type of user. It externalizes
knowledge about users in order to 1) create a shared
understanding of user needs, and 2) aid in decision
making.”
• Says: Contains direct quotes based on what the user
has said, for example during an empathy interview.
• Thinks: Considers what the user might be thinking,
but may not want to explicitly reveal. For example:
“Am I stupid for not being able to navigate this
website?”
• Does: Looks at concrete actions the user takes, for
example: refreshing a page, clicking a button,
comparing different options before making a
purchase.
• Feels: Considers what emotions the user is
experiencing at certain points. For example:
“Frustrated: Can’t find Topic
what they are looking for on the 04/11/2024
Example
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• Since the invention of factories in the industrial revolution opened the gates
to mass-produced goods, mass consumerism has been an ever-growing part
of how the world operates. However, the one-size-fits-all approach to
consumption and solving problems has begun to show signs of inadequacy.
• Using the power of “averages” X.
• In the 1940s, aviation accidents happened very frequently (as many as 17
crashes a day).
• Initially, the air force presumed that the reason for so many accidents was
the air force’s switch to using more complicated and faster planes.
• After some research, however, the air force discovered the real reason
behind the accidents; they had designed the planes’ cockpits and helmets
to conform to the dimensions of the “average” soldier’s body. In a study of
over 4,000 air force pilots, it was found that none of the air force pilots fell
within the dimensions of the supposed “average” man.
• It was no wonder pilots had problems with using the planes! In the end, the
air force created adjustable equipment to fit most soldiers’ bodies, thereby
solving the problem.
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Example
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• If we develop solutions in isolation, without essential insights about
our users, we may create solutions that completely miss the mark
and thus be ignored by the market.
• For example, many MP3 players have come and gone without much
creating much of an impact, whereas the iPod was very successful
at not only providing a technological solution but also providing a
completely desirable and profitable experience, which resulted in
Apple’s taking a market lead.

Home 10 Min Malls

Delivery Delivery

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Example
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Electric Old age Apple Wheels in

vehicles homes mobile suitcase

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lixom5XWNf0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3mXaZZ3O0E

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Foldable MI Band Water park Roti maker
furniture
Assignment
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• Create an empathy map for the idea of your choice and make a
presentation of the same.

• Time : one week.

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Thank You
?