I have been learning interaction design while rebuilding operational software. The biggest shift has been understanding that an interface is not a visual layer added after the product works. It is the model of the product that the user has to learn.
Three models
In About Face, Alan Cooper describes three models inside software:
- The implementation model is how the system actually works. Database tables, services, routes, and jobs.
- The mental model is how the user believes the work happens. Orders arrive, claims get reviewed, and approvals move forward.
- The represented model is what the interface shows. The objects, actions, relationships, and states a user can see.
Good interaction design brings the represented model closer to the user’s mental model. A database may split an object across several tables, but the person operating the interfaces sees it as one item. This way the user does not have to translate the underlying system (i.e. it is abstracted away).
Start with the objects
Object-Oriented UX offers a useful starting point through its ORCA process:
- Objects: Identify the core entities in the user’s mental model.
- Relationships: Map how these objects interact with and nest inside one another.
- Calls to Action (CTA): Determine what the user can do with or to each object.
- Attributes: Detail the unique information (data, text, metadata) that makes up each object.
This means starting with nouns before designing pages. Once the objects are clear, the interface can represent the workflow around them.
Make the workflow visible
Users should be able to see what needs attention. A good interface should guide the user towards workflows that need attention and delineate the amount of effort per task. A longer task should indicate a progress metric or show it is working in the background. Reversible actions should provide a quick undo flow. And permanent actions should require clear confirmation.
Ultimately, the user’s mental model should be framed through the interface. It needs to be familiar enough for quick start but clear enough to teach the underlying rules over repetitive use.
Good interaction design lowers the amount of translation a person has to do.
