Interrupted UX - Add A Dose of Reality To Usability Testing
Summary
Key Insights
-
•
Traditional UX testing generally plans for perfect, uninterrupted user paths, ignoring realistic distractions.
-
•
Interrupted user experience involves deliberately adding real-life interruptions such as phone calls or connectivity issues into usability testing.
-
•
Building interruptions into tests increases participant immersion and yields richer, more realistic data.
-
•
The three-step interrupted UX methodology consists of investigate, separate, and frame.
-
•
Observing the actual context and user goals is critical to identifying relevant interruptions for testing.
-
•
Interruption timing should follow a story curve—inserting disruptions at mid-flow maximizes realism and insight.
-
•
Prototype fidelity affects how effectively interruptions can be tested; higher fidelity enables more impactful disruptions.
-
•
Ethical considerations include informing participants about potential stress without ruining test authenticity and managing emotional responses carefully.
-
•
Interruptions reveal hidden usability issues, such as the need for auto-save functionality.
-
•
Interrupted UX should be used supplementally during key product stages to balance complexity and benefit.
Notable Quotes
"We typically design for the perfect path. Do you design and plan and test for the unexpected path?"
"Generally everyone is just cutting right through because that’s the fastest route."
"Building in interruptions exponentially increases the accuracy of the findings."
"You want to separate out those distractions from the actual tasks."
"Interruptions get participants more immersed and lead to higher quality discoveries."
"If you begin to add interruption, you’ll see a big difference in what comes out of that study."
"The customer’s mental model is a bit different than your mental model and also different than the actual product."
"You want to let participants know it’s a bit non-typical and they are not being tricked or evaluated."
"The timing is key—you want to interrupt them when they are in that flow state."
"Interruptions reveal things like auto-save that you never thought about before."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"I was talking with a person who said I’m like an idea machine, a 24-7 idea machine. The reply was immediate. It isn’t, you get used up and spat out."
Dr. Karl JeffriesThe Science of Creativity for DesignOps
January 8, 2024
"Investment is attention: If the business funds you, it means they believe in what you do."
Amy MarquezINVEST: Discussion
June 15, 2018
"Both tribes really believe in doing awesome for customers, that’s our common ground."
Steve Portigal Chris Chapo Kelly Goto Christian RohrerDiscussion
May 13, 2015
"Splitting people’s allocation across different teams created work-life balance issues requiring more oversight."
Alicia MootyDesign Staffing Models
September 30, 2021
"We want to stay in the game no users cursing our name."
Ana Maria Montero Barrantes Aditi Dhar Michelle Kaplan Nate Osborne Matt LaurenceThe Authentic UX Talent Show
January 8, 2024
"The ultimate measure is bringing value so people invite you back to work with them again and again."
Lada Gorlenko Sharbani Dhar Sébastien Malo Rob Mitzel Ivana Ng Michal Anne RogondinoTheme 1: Discussion
January 8, 2024
"We think about research as the magnetic field that attracts every part of the business into alignment around the customer."
Sofia QuinteroThe Product Philosophy Behind EnjoyHQ
March 10, 2021
"If you think innovation can happen without buy-in from the CEO, I would love to see that; I have not seen it work."
Laura KleinUnique challenges of innovation in enterprises
April 23, 2020
"You’ve got to take control of the backlog and position your team as value-driven, not just servicing individual teams."
Andrew MichaelBuilding a Product Insights Team
March 10, 2022
Latest Books All books
Dig deeper with the Rosenbot
Why do current capitalist incentives make systemic and community-focused tech solutions difficult to implement?
How can UX teams use the exercise of banning jargon to improve collaboration and shared understanding?
What are the consequences of lacking universal long-term care on intergenerational wealth?