UX Design Basics: Mental Models

Check out Jamal's new project: www.truthaboutdesign.com
In this video, Jamal Nichols explains Mental Models, a core concept in User Centered Design.
Purchase the full course at www.creativelive.com/courses/...
Keywords: Human Centered Design, Interaction Design, UX Design

[@nathanael2814]

I had a thought about the first question you got. I think you answered it well but what do you think about this. Perhaps one of the reasons that Chrysler's gear shift was so much less successful than the rotating knob (even though they both rely on a little indication light) is because it was actually *too similar*. Because it looks like a regular gear shift it's a problem when it doesn't behave EXACTLY the same way. The knob on the other hand, doesn't look like a regular gear shift, requiring users to create a new "sub-set" within their mental model for gear shifts. Basically what I'm trying to say is that change has to be different enough that users have to give thought, but not too much thought. Great presentation btw 👍

[@borlarh]

Danke Jamal, i really love how you deliver your lessons with real life experiences in designs.

[@almightyben85]

One of the best explanations of mental models! Well done Jamal!

[@whothewho82]

This is GOOD.Trying to make a transition into UX/UI Design and this definitely smoothed some things out for me! Great work

[@whothewho82]

UX Consulting Academy hi! Good to hear from you, unfortunately I wasn’t able to secure corporate work as a UX designer. Many interviewers saw me more as a UI designer, of which I don’t blame them. I’ve had a few great opportunities for freelance UI work though. I have also created a concept for a great product that your video helped me secure. So thanks for that

[@gidkideon]

For the gearshift example, I would add that since the nob/dial selector was so different in both placement and how you interact with it from a traditional shifter that it forced the user to pay more attention to since it DIDn't fit their previous mental model. So fewer people probably left their car in drive because they didn't assume it was. This way of interacting also means they probably, at least the first 20 times or so, actively looked at the selector to see it in park or neutral. So to me that's why it's better than the faulty gear selector that seemed more like a traditional gear shift. It's also a good example of how, unlike with aesthetics, you want to break with mental models if you're going to change things that effect safety as that is the time you really want people to have to slow down and think about things right?

[@petarpopovic3306]

I agree. One point though is that I don't see why the knob doesn't have a line / arrow / ridge pointing in the direction of the letters, to keep that positional awareness. I think most of the actions / controls in a car should be tactile, meaning - you should be able to do them without looking / checking if you did the desired thing. (could be that the knob only goes one left and one right, as +/- state) but then it's still not really good design for the purpose. Also, the space saving and idea that "the shifter doesn't go directly to the drivetrain" was achieved many many years ago with the shifter lever behind the wheel, just another stick next to the wipers controls.

[@christina6335]

At first, I was like, "Oh, no! Car stuff, I won't be able to get this!" And then I continued watching-this was awesome.

[@kirin357]

This is the best presentation on this subject that I have ever seen. Great work!

[@samahlaaroussi7652]

Very convenient and the concept is concrete! I'd say that I am lucky to watch this video. I do realise the mental model existence now! Thank you Jamal.N its crucial work

[@Santacruzstudios]

Awesome presentation Jamal, thank you so much for sharing your ideas here.

[@Ludwigschmidt]

i really enjoyed this video and would love to see the next parts of the course! ;)

[@அனுபவவடிவம்]

Very well explained about mental model. Thanks for the wonderful explanation!👍

[@paulwest7846]

Good presentation: the designers model / users model diagram isn't credited but is from Don Norman's The Psychology of Everyday Things (Basic Books, 1988).

[@danieldante8341]

Thank you Jamal, great presentation and explanation

[@aaliaahamed2718]

Learnt something new! Thanks Jamal

[@rohanbirajdar1220]

Best video I have seen on this topic.

[@Rayhanmahmuddevinedesign]

Really great explanation.

[@seanstewart549]

I'm a product manager and our designers kept saying "mental models" 1000 times - I had to look it up. This was a fantastic video for learning. Thank you, Jamal!

[@akkinana]

How do you tackle the problem of managing designers without any design background yourself ?

[@kristinludlowUX]

On behalf of designers everywhere, thank you for having the humbleness to look it up.

[@kristinludlowUX]

Product managers or owners are not designers and we don't expect them to be. We want them to be able to give us smart business requirements and let us do the designing. Their feedback should be lucid and user-focused. If they were designers, that could be problematic since you might have a PM who wants to micro-manage how you design. That's not why we are here.

[@keswanihoshang]

Brilliant! Thanks.

[@xXWarPotatoXx]

What a great speaker.

[@leafdragon94]

Great explanation

[@muskduh]

Thanks for the video

[@BruceEsrig]

To come up with viable designs to replace an existing design, you have to do enough thinking to figure out what is essential about the existing design. If you're putting your reputation on the line, you probably want to do enough user research to determine whether your beliefs about what is essential are correct. The on-the-floor control eliminated position as a cue without introducing a replacement cue. Once this defect is exposed (which is likely to happen during testing), IF (big if) you can analyze the defect and figure out what's essential about it, you can compensate for the defect. So ask yourself: is there a replacement cue in the replacement design that is superior to the cue in the on-the-floor design? How can a vehicle operator tell what gear the car is in? More generally, what is better about the replacement experience compared with the on-the-floor design? What prevents the failure reported in the real-life tests?

[@gyaniguru1561]

you are star jamal, thanks

[@JanelleSpeaks]

Very good. Thank you.

[@flaviorodriguez8594]

thank you for that!

[@udaybali4900]

literally wow, nice explanation its sooo interesting

[@jmaucvdg]

Great explanation about Mental Models and about designers need to code, I´m very much agree with you. In my work the design leader thinks we don´t need to "distract" with things doesn´t concern to us :(, but I´m not agree.

[@henryjoseizquierdovillegas9640]

Wooww good content. very much thanks by this information 👨‍💻

[@GideonAbochie]

Hmmm...This is really valuable info!!!

[@tedfitzpatrickyt]

that ram shift dial misses out on natural mapping tho

[@gkassee37]

I still don't totally understand how the knob gear shifter didn't run into the same issue as the joystick. I understand the first one's issue was that it lacked positional feedback, but it was also an issue that you'd have to look at it to see what gear you are in. Wouldn't the knob still have that problem?

[@simonkubeka394]

No it won't because it retained the mental model that was missing which is like Jimal said the positional feedback. Meaning once they fix that and add a new feature then they can implement a whole new concept.

[@harrydance1969]

Hmm, I take your point but as it happens neither my last Volvo or current Jag e-pace have positional status (just illuminated icons). I think the problem relates to the intelligence average of a given nation? (Europe hasn’t had a problem with these design improvements).

[@PerpetualEducation]

What about a less specific example? Before you can speak - you can develop these blurry/unscrutinized understandings. A baby is hungry or scared / and it cries out - and food appears! Oh. So, that's how becoming 'not hungry' happens. Great examples in this video. We just worry when "UX" is the entry point for conceptual models.

[@thinkingaloud7925]

This me now, going from code to design

[@numbers9to0]

Antenna Gate Apple: You are holding it wrong!

[@janeknox3036]

In other words "It does what I think it does and nothing else"

[@iamnidal]

The reason the other one is better is because its in-front of your face, easier to remember to glance at and see if it is or isn't on park.

[@missScarl3t]

it's an awesome explanation of Mental Models. The only thing I did not agree with is that you NEED to code, if we can empathise and understand our users without doing the actual job they do...that means we CAN empathise with our developers and understand how to work collaboratively in an efficient way and without making the dev's life hard.

[@cc5914]

Not true.He is right cos that way you can have much better understanding and have bigger paycheck and chances on the market

[@derekstiles4033]

In regards to the Chrysler gear shifter, I disagree on several of your points regarding who is at fault for the accidents and injuries, because all they do is transfer the end-users / customers negligence, or to be honest, stupidity on to the manufacturer and/or designer! #1 The customer bought the car in sound mind and was not manipulated in regards to its functionality, therefore, the decision to buy a car with said gear shifter was solely their decision. #2 There were no relevant issues related to any manufacturer defect, meaning the gear shifter *did* function as intended, both at the time of the accident, as well as, at the time of purchase. _(brings you back to point #1)_ #4 The explanation provided for the manner in which the *accidents* happened clearly demonstrates that the customer *did at least try* to put the vehicle in the Parked position. I'm 100% positive the following is a safety feature. For the vehicle ignition to turn off, the gear shifter has to be placed in the Neutral or Parked position! So *NO* vehicle's *_"drove away"_* they simply rolled away. Yet this fact *blatantly points out* that the customer would have *had to use the gear shifter to even turn off the vehicle!* (Brings you back to points #1 & #2 This is like saying a small group of people (let's say around *140* people) has only ever owned regular vehicles, yet one day they each go purchase a McLaren. * Now I should have to point out the (OBVIOUS) following but, they do so with *their own time and money, it's their decision, they were not manipulated and they were of sound mind... That said, the average vehicles that they are use to have an average acceleration rate of 0-60 mph in 6+ seconds, but the McLaren has an average acceleration rate of 0-60 mph in 3+ seconds. These 140 people are not use to a vehicle that accelerates twice as fast, although with your logic, if 100 people got in an accident which injured 40 people this would *warrant a recall of 1,000,000 vehicles* simply because *they were not used to it!* YEAH... Acceleration Rate *AND* Gear Shifter Positioning are *BOTH* ridiculous reasons to recall any amount of vehicles and it's equally ridiculous to pass the blame on to manufacturers because of *STUPIDITY aka Bad Drivers*

[@chadwhite5822]

Anton Yelchin

[@DeepfriedBaby]

Skip to 3:48 -

[@m.design]

Watch it at 1.25x and thank me later!

[@busimo]

1.5x

[@timothytunde500]

@@busimo 9ice catch

[@timothytunde500]

9ice catch.

[@seeexy]

no ty.

[@ayushsrivastava8793]

70th comment

[@epistte]

If you need more than the very basic instruction manual to tell someone how to use your design then your design is bad or unnecessarily complicated. It is well understood that people do not read the owners manual but you shouldn't need to read 2 pages to use something as obvious as a shift lever. You should be able to get into a car and within 2 minutes be able to safely drive away. This part of design engineering needs to be taught in schools.

[@bryanb3456]

Aw man I thought it was Dave Chappelle.

[@TyrantTitan.]

good presentation, just get rid of your "uh's"

[@JamalNichols]

Thanks for the feedback! Perhaps you can link me to some videos you've made so I can take notes on how you do it in your presentations?

[@purnakumar8833]

hey jamal u have got a good content however ur presentation needs more improvement.

[@christyl7698]

At 1.75x it is still slow. Otherwise great

[@sateeshbharti]

In the ad example, how was iPhone completely a new paradigm at the time? There were plenty of other phones (even old nokias) that had same or similar general interface, i mean they sucked at implementation and iphone succeeded at it. But iphone was harldy a completely new experience to be relevant in this discussion.

[@gregnicholls8347]

God, can't make head nor tail of this video. Perhaps it's to do with the presentation or I'm a bit thick.

[@maskedvillainai]

Another director blaming their fans for poor writing.