The Assumptions Designers Make
by Teresa Brazen(Why Mobile Phones Don’t Make Sense To Everyone)
A “Tea with Teresa” podcast with Natasha Alani, Researcher for Adaptive Path’s Mobile Literacy Project
By now you may have heard about the release of research and designs from Adaptive Path’s Mobile Literacy project. If you haven’t, here’s the gist: In and effort to understand how mobile technology can work more effectively in emerging markets, Adaptive Path went to rural India to investigate the impact of mobile technology and developed concepts for new mobile devices for this market.
I interviewed Natasha Alani, one of the researchers, about her trip and what she witnessed in India. It’s an interesting conversation that will give you some insight into the obstacles that those in rural and highly illiterate societies confront when trying to use something many of us take for granted as simple: a mobile phone. Natasha talks about how the basic assumptions underlying most mobile phone designs (ie: literacy, numeric literacy, and an understanding of basic computer functions) can quickly become obstacles for communication. She also poses an exciting challenge for mobile phone designers everywhere: step back, break apart foundational assumptions in mobile design, and explore new possibilities. The result could be an opportunity to make mobile communication truly accessible to a much wider global audience.
To see the designs that came out of this research visit: http://www.adaptivepath.com/mobileliteracy
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