UX Dialectic: Understanding the Constant Evolution of User Needs

Santhosh Gandhi

In this article, I will be discussing the Dialectic process in the User Experience of a product.

What is Dialectic?

Dialectic is a method of reasoning that involves the examination and resolution of opposing ideas or viewpoints. It is a way of understanding how different concepts or theories relate to one another and how they change over time.

It could be easily understood in three steps

1. Identification of a certain concept
2. Identification of its alternate concept
3. Synthesis of these two will lead to a new concept.

Source

From the Hegelian perspective, dialectic is considered a continuous cyclic process in which there is a concept (Thesis), then there is an alternative to a concept (Antithesis), and the interaction of these two will result in a synthesis or compromise or both. As result, there will be a shift in position inside a system. This process repeats itself over and over again.

Dialectic in User Experience

A dialectic is a powerful tool for understanding and resolving conflicts and contradictions in any field of study. As a UX researcher, I have found that the dialectic method can be useful in understanding the evolution of user experience in a product. I refer to this as UX Dialectic.

Basically “UX Dialectic is a way of understanding how user experience in a product develops and changes over time”

It could be easily understood in three steps

1. Users experience a problem in a product/system.
2. Applying a solution to the problem
3. Implementing new solutions leads to a new experience for the user i.e there is a shift in user experience

Again this is a cyclic process, At the micro level UX Dialectic might be insignificant but at the macro level, it is significant.

Let's take an E-commerce Website as an example, and see its evolution.

Cycle 1

User problem/need: Users find it difficult to shop for products without physically visiting stores.

Solution: Create an e-commerce website that displays product information and allows users to place orders online.

New user experience: Users can now shop for products from the comfort of their own homes and have them delivered to their doorstep.

Cycle 2

User problem/need: Users are concerned about the safety and security of their personal and financial information when shopping online.

Solution: Implement secure payment methods and encryption technologies to protect user data.

New user experience: Users can now shop online with greater confidence and trust in the security of the website.

Cycle 3

User problem/need: Users find it difficult to evaluate the quality of products without physically examining them.

Solution: Include high-resolution product images, detailed descriptions, and customer reviews to help users make informed purchasing decisions.

New user experience: Users can now make more informed decisions when shopping online, leading to greater satisfaction with their purchases.

Cycle 4

User problem/need: Users want to feel and touch products before making a purchase.

Solution: Haptic feedback

New user experience: Users can experience the tactile sensations of a product through haptic feedback, providing a more immersive and satisfying shopping experience. The website can also use data and analytics to optimize the haptic feedback for individual users, based on their preferences and behaviors.

Why Understanding UX Dialectics is Important?

As the user experience of a product evolves over time, new needs and problems will inevitably arise. This is because the shift in user experience resulting from new solutions will create a new context for the user, and this new context may introduce new problems or needs that were not present before. In other words, the new problems or needs that arise are not just problems of the old user experience, but problems of the new user experience that has been created.

For example, in a food ordering app, introducing a new feature such as pre-ordering may create a new need for users to track the status of their pre-orders. This need did not exist before the pre-ordering feature was introduced, but now that it is available, users may expect to be able to track their orders in real time.

Similarly, in an e-commerce website, adding a haptic feature may create a new need for users to be able to control the intensity of the haptic feedback.

As such, it is important for UX researchers and designers to be aware of the evolving needs and problems of their users and to continually iterate on their solutions to meet these new needs. By embracing the cyclic process of UX Dialectic and staying focused on the user, teams can create products that are not only effective but also relevant and valuable to their users.

To stay ahead of the curve, it is also important for UX teams to anticipate new needs and problems that may arise as a result of future shifts in user experience. This requires a deep understanding of user behavior and preferences, as well as an ability to anticipate how emerging technologies and trends will impact the way users interact with a product.

Feel Free to connect with me on Linkedin! https://www.linkedin.com/in/isanthoshgandhi

Special Mention to Mr.Saravana Moorthy, Who taught me the concept of Dialectic.

Reference

1. Hegel’s Dialectics (https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/hegel-dialectics/)
2. Design and Dialectic (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325405158_Design_and_Dialectic)
3. Hegel’s Dialectic: The Explanation of Possibility (https://philpapers.org/rec/PINHDT)