The Divergency Model: UX Research for and with Stigmatized and Idiosyncratic Populations

摘要

In UX research, people with idiosyncratic or stigmatized conditions may go unrecognized, be dismissed as oudiers, or be lumped within the larger normative group. This most directly affects persons with disabilities, medical conditions, or differing lifestyle or belief systems. This tendency may over represent the homogenous group while under representing other idiosyncratic groups based on complex factors such as stigma or perceived risk associated with revealing more accurate aspects of conditions, beliefs or lifestyle. This research bias negatively impacts the outcomes of the UX data and impacts the quality of designed products or services. Therefore, there is a critical need to identify the roles of ethnographic research, cultural programming, and cultural relativism with regard to stigmatized and idiosyncratic populations. The Divergency Model is a UX research and design methodology to identify and measure proximal distances in stigma/conformity and apathy/motivation between individual or target groups.