From the anthropological perspective, the user does not exist. “The User” has been a category used by sciences and industries to name the relationship between people and digital interfaces. However, more than fifteen years of “user experience research” have demonstrated the need for applying a broader approach when an understanding of human behaviour is required in technological and business innovation processes. In this scenario, Applied Anthropology brings a useful perspective for managing the complexities of global markets and large groups of stakeholders. Maritza Guaderrama (PhD) wants to point out the advantages of anthropological gaze: questioning the traditional design process and introducing the importance of taking into account the sense-making as a central human activity. Thus, the user experience research, boosted by social science contribution, becomes more than a set of exploratory methods or a group of techniques for getting customer data in a validation stage for business design. The anthropological approach provides framework and tools that allows multidisciplinary team to access to a powerful source of inspiration thus by the immersion in people realities as by self-distance from their pre-concepts and prejudices.

1. UXSpain
ANTHROPOLOGY & DESIGN:
What can we learn from a 19th-century science?
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

2. Opposite approaches?
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

3. “The purpose of anthropology is
to make the world safe for human
differences”
Ruth Benedict (1887-1948)
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

4. The disciplines linked to UX have a
“universalizing” sense:
Transform through design
the relationship with interfaces
into something…
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

5. UXSpain 2014 Maritza Guaderrama, PhD
simple,

6. Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014
simple, useful,

7. Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014
simple, useful,
funny,

8. simple, useful,
funny, even
emotionally
exciting :P
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

9. What can the contribution be of a science that seeks to
explain human differences to the universalizing claim of
“user-centered” design?

10. Problems, only problems…
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

11. Questioning the concept of
user
Structural sampling
Stakeholders map
IT-team involvement
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

12. Questioning creativity as exclusive to the
design process
Co-creation
Translation
Prototyping
Redesign
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

13. Questioning the concept of
Experience design
Interpretation and appropriation
Ecosystems
Continuity of the experience
Onmichannel
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

14. Inspiration
Immersion
Self- distance (estrangement)
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014
Questioning the concept of
research

15. In conclusion
Challenges of
human-centered design
Maritza Guaderrama, PhDUXSpain 2014

16. Naïve vision of the designer as
provider of solutions
Maritza Guaderrama, PhD
UXSpain 2014

17. The unpredictability of risks
(and success)
Maritza Guaderrama, PhD
UXSpain 2014

18. Dealing with complexity
Maritza Guaderrama, PhD
UXSpain 2014

19. Maritza Guaderrama, PhD
Managing Partner Spain & Latam
+34 913 080 890
Maritza.guaderrama@designit.com
@garua
Thanks
Gracias
Gràcies
Danke
Tak
Takk
Tack
Obrigado
‫תודה‬
谢谢