Empathy: The Science of Feeling. Do You Have Enough Empathy to Reach Your Full UX Potential? - Bernadette Irizarry and Emma Chittenden

EMPATHY:SCIENCE OF FEELING

UXPA 2015 | June 25, 2015

Bern Irizarry @bernirizarry [email protected]

Emma Chittenden @emchi [email protected]

Where we started Our journey began in London…

Bernadette IrizarryCEO and Founder

VLVT / Velvet Hammer @bernirizarry

Emma ChittendenCEO

Oubliette @emchi

SOFT

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SKILL

EMPATHY

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DEFICIT

What is empathy? Is it “real”? Is it scientific?

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Baron-Cohen, Simon. Zero Degrees of Empathy, 2011 TEDxHouses of Parliament - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXcU8x_xK18

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“Empathy occurs when we suspend our single-minded focus of attention and instead adopt a double-minded focus

of attention”

Source: Baron-Cohen, Simon. Zero Degrees of Empathy, 2011

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“Empathy is our ability to identify what someone else is thinking or feeling and to

respond to their thought and feelings with appropriate emotion.”

Source: Baron-Cohen, Simon. Zero Degrees of Empathy, 2011

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Source: Baron-Cohen, Simon. Zero Degrees of Empathy, 2011

AFFECTIVECOGNITIVE(Also called Emotional Empathy)

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THE EMPATHY BELL CURVE

Can it be observed? neuroscientists do the darnedest things

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THE EMPATHY CIRCUIT

Source: Baron-Cohen, Simon. Zero Degrees of Empathy, 2011, Illustration Produced by Mike Lombardo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnvSRvmRlgA

Can it be measured? and why might we want to

Do we have consensus? cognitive empathy

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DIFFERENT DEFINITIONS

Mirroring Personal Distress

Empathetic Concern

CognitiveEmpathy

Self Empathy

Emotional Empathy

Source: Young, Indi. Practical Empathy, 2015

Should UX own empathy? Teams and empathy

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• Online survey fielded to UX, Design, Engineering and Management teams

• 40 Empathy Quotient from Autism Research Center, original filler questions were not recreated here

• Set of question perception of importance of empathy in their work, team and company

• Currently building greater response set to allow for cross-tabs on team mix and methodologies

TEST DESIGN

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PHASE 1: Makers Online Survey (June 2015)• See where we are at as “makers” • Do profiles emerge? • What is our perception of empathy? • How and what are we practicing today? • What if any correlation exist to team mix?

PHASE 2: Longitudinal Study with Teams (September 2016)• Can we move the empathy needle for teams? • How do teams respond when incorporating empathetic mindset? • How is that reflected in their product

TEST DESIGN

1. I can easily tell if someone else wants to enter a conversation. 2. I find it difficult to explain to others things that I understand easily, when they don’tunderstand it the first time.

3. I really enjoy caring for other people. 4. I find it hard to know what to do in a social situation. 5. People often tell me that I went too far in driving my point home in a discussion.

6. It doesn’t bother me too much if I am late meeting a friend. 7. Friendships and relationships are just too difficult, so I tend not to bother with them. 8. I often find it difficult to judge if something is rude or polite. 9. In a conversation, I tend to focus on my own thoughts rather than on what my listener might be thinking. 10. When I was a child, I enjoyed cutting up worms to see what would happen.

SAMPLE QUESTIONS

© 1998, 2015 Simon Baron Cohen, Sally Wainright

On average, most women score about 47 and most men about 42 on the Empathetic Quotient (EQ) Scale.

0–32 = Lower than Average 33–52 = Average 53–63 = Above Average 64–80 = High

EMPATHY QUOTIENT SCORING

© 1998, 2015 Simon Baron Cohen, Sally Wainright

@bernirizarry, @emchiSAMPLE QUESTIONS

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WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

• Currently building greater response set to allow for cross-tabs on team mix and methodologies.

• Recruit and plan for longitudinal studies regarding methodologies and team mix.

Are we doing this right? deepening the UX toolkit

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GATHER UNDERSTAND LOOK FOR PATTERN BRAINSTORM & STRATEGY

DEVELOP APPLY

• Accepting and Listening• Neutral• Perspective Gathering

• Summarize• Spend Time Reviewing• Crystallize and write key ideas• Reactions, Guiding Principles • and Emotions

• InvestigateSimilarities/Differences

• Beliefs• Decision

• Sketching• Storytelling• Share

Support as they are not persuade

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AriAr

HOW DO I KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING

EMPATHETIC LISTENING FEELS DIFFERENT

REVIEW FOR REACTIONS, EMOTIONS & GUIDING PRINCIPLES

DISENGAGE & BUILDPLATFORM FOR SUPPORT

PRACTICE AND ENGAGECONSISTENTLY

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AriAr

Remember:

•Be curious about everything •Be present •Strengthen quieting your mind (Meditation, Mindfulness) •Be supportive (Not a usability study) •Follow their lead (Leave the interview guide at home) •Tell me more about that? Why is that? Use as few words as possible while showing you are interested

NOT YOUR AVERAGE INTERVIEW

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“Both Akio Morita of Sony and Steve Jobs were famous for never commissioning market

research — instead, they’d just walk around the world watching what people did. They’d put themselves in the shoes of

their customers. https://hbr.org/2012/05/empathy-the-most-valuable-thing-they-t

In practice Empathetic Listening

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You are still the creators and makers - this is the place where sparks and seeds land

WELL DESIGNED BY JON KOLKO

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• Empathy is about support not persuasion

• It is a shared responsibility (Put the mantle down!)

• Practice

• Hire for curiosity

• Invent new tools!

THINGS TO REMEMBER

THANK

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YOU