Designing Cognitive Engagement For Everyone

User experience design has a large body of work on creating simple designs, removing abstraction, using patterns users already know and building flows that make sense. In this talk from UX Salon 2014, user experience designer Andrew Zusman points out that all of these steps towards better usability assume users who can comprehend those UX elements. What if a user’s cognition differs from the norm?

Andrew asks how designers can begin to design for people with medical conditions that affect cognitive ability. He discusses universal design and accessibility, and why it is important to consider cognitive ability when designing digital products. The talk centres on the importance of universal design, and explains how focusing on the peripheral user creates a better experience for everyone.