2013 Volume 12 Issue 2 Pages 201-208
Based on the deeper understanding of human cognition, now we can make designs less conflicting with human nature. However, the gap between design and cognition still impedes the progress of design cognition nowadays. In academia, the boundaries of disciplines make students hardly to learn knowledge of cognition, computing and design practice simultaneously. To build bridge across disciplines, I devise an innovative course, design cognition. The course bridges human cognition (including affect), adaptive technology and design to deduce design principles and constraints, which guide designs of products, services or systems to assist human living a happier life. Happier life requires more positive emotion and more appealing designs, which is also the goal of Affective design. Design cognition has an iterative, four-step course structure. It introduces the cognitive theories established in the past few decades and uses the real world examples to guide students how to apply the learned cognitive principles to discover the possible conflicts between human cognition and designs and to develop the possible design solutions using adaptive technologies accordingly. Moreover, the joint design project requiring inter-disciplinary knowledge, including Design Cognition, Affective Design, and User Study, allows students to consolidate the learned cognitive principles and reinforce the way of applying cognitive principles into design. Finally, the outcomes of students' joined design project really show that the quality of affect and usability in their products and services are improved.
