OUGD601 - RESEARCH - Phenomenology and Experience

PHENOMENOLOGY AND EXPERIENCE: THE ROLE OF THE GRAPHIC DESIGNER:

"EXPERIENCE" reinstating the definition:

'Hassenzhal and Roto (2007) state the case for the difference between the functional view of usability and the phenomenological view of emotional impact. People have and use technological products because "they have things to do"; they need to make phone calls, write documents, shop online, or search for information. Hassenzhal and Roto call these "do goals", appropriately evaluated by the usability and usefulness measures of their "pragmatic quality". Human users also have the emotional and psychological needs, including needs involving self-identity, relatedness to others, and being satisfied with life. These are "be goals", appropriately evaluated by the emotional impact and phenomenological measures of their "hedonic quality"'.

'Interactive products are perceived by their users/owners with regard to their capability to fulfil do-goals and be-goals. Thus, people may perceive products as primarily hedonic (a be-product), primarily pragmatic (a do-product), both or even neither hedonic or pragmatic'.

(Hassenzahl and Roto, 2007).

Phenomenology:
is a branch of philosophy that explores the structures of conscious experience.

- experience is subjective - 'we live through them or perform them'.
- intentionality describes how the individual intends towards an experience - that is, the individual directs consciousness towards and experience - "will".
- experience is constructive - experience is experience in context.
- the conditions of intentionality - the role of preconscious or unconscious activity in experience - 'or own experience spreads out'.

Aesthetics:
broadly speaking, aesthetics is the philosophy of "beauty". However, contemporary perspectives recognise that aesthetic appreciation is embedded within history and cultural diversity. Therefore, a knowledge of aesthetics is depended on knowledge of culture and context.
For a graphic designer, aesthetic knowledge stems from an understanding of the development of graphic technique and form, as well as the interrelationships of beauty, culture and communication.

Subjectivity:
aspects and theories of subjectivity play a pivotal role in graphic design practice. Certain facets of subjectivity inform an understanding of the individual:

- desire.
- identity.
- gender and sexuality.

These aspects were adopted in Ernest Dichter's "motivational research" which explored often hidden motivators in consumers.
Effective graphic designers strike a balance between aesthetic appreciation and communication that places the end-user as the central motivator.

https://www.slideshare.net/nuxuk/the-role-of-the-graphic-designer-in-uxd-simon-jones-leeds-college-of-art
(Accessed 14 September 2018).