Understanding UX: Common Myths and Misconceptions

User Experience Design (UXD) or as often referred to simply as UX, is a discipline that is frequently subject to misinterpretation, both by those outside the profession — who are more likely than not never heard of it, and by UX professionals within its ranks.

It is common for us — UX practitioners — to encounter inquiries about what UX truly entails, and a lot of times we fail to properly explain it, receiving blank stares of confusion in return. This occasionally leads us to provide over-detailed explanations, delving into industry-specific terminologies — such as “Information Architecture is…, or User Journey that…” — to make it more comprehensible, but alas, that doesn’t serve us well.

This miscommunication often results in inaccurate and misguided expectations about the anticipated outcomes and contributions of our work, and ultimately undervalues the true impact of what we do. It is up to us to properly define the discipline and to cater our definition to the target audience.

One way for us to arrive at that point is to understand what UX is not. This article aims to dissect some common myths and misconceptions about UX, allowing us to foster a better understanding of what UX truly is.

1. UX is not UI

You’ve probably seen a similar chart to the one below or an iceberg model the first time you searched for “UX/UI” in Google Images, While these visuals make an admirable attempt to differentiate between UX and UI, they often fall short of capturing the full spectrum of these disciplines. In fact, they tend to intermingle the two, blurring the lines of understanding.

We also incorporate “UX/UI” into our job titles, resumes, and portfolios to align with the prevalent terminology in the job market, but I believe that this is to our detriment, as we need to learn how to separate the two because they are not one and the same and are not interchangeable. The fact is, you can do UI and never use a single principle of UX, and you can do UX without touching the UI.

UI Design deals with the visual elements the users interact with when using the product, this includes the design of the screens, pages, buttons, icons, and other graphical elements. The responsibility of UI designers is to create a visually appealing and consistent look for the product, and their goal is to ensure that the user interface is aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate.

UX, on the other hand, revolves around the overall experience of the users when interacting with a product, from the moment they start using the product to the moment they achieve their goal, the focus here is on how the product feels to use. UX designers are responsible for understanding user needs by conducting user research to define gaps and/or problems and designing the overall flow and functionality of the product. They ensure that the product is easy to use, efficient, and provides value to the user.

It’s not a matter of choosing one over the other, but of understanding the unique contributions of each, allowing us to come closer to defining UX and what is it all about.

2. UX’s Main Concern is not Aesthetics

I’ve been approached by one client who asked me to apply my UX knowledge to revamp her company’s mobile application, she asked me — word for word: “I’m looking for a UX designer to make our app look nice and pretty.”!!

I was not one who would risk losing a potential client by correcting them right away about the proper use of terminology, I carried along with her request and sent her a quota for my services, only to discover that she was not interested in the research, user flow, nor usability testing. She was merely looking for a new UI design that would refresh her company’s image.

At this stage, I attempted to explain how my method and UX expertise would ultimately benefit her business goals from the eyes of the users, but she was set on getting a fresh, attractive look for the company, and little else. We agreed on a contract for a UI redesign, and I set to work.

This was a stark reminder of the importance of clear communication and aligning expectations. It was evident that the client’s limited familiarity with UX wasn’t her fault, considering her expertise lay outside this domain. Instead, the onus fell on me to establish a clear distinction between UX and UI early on thereby enhancing the chances of a more successful collaboration and project outcome.

UX’S FOCUS REVOLVES AROUND FUNCTIONALITY, USER JOURNEY, EASE OF USE, AND EFFICIENCY.

As it turns out, many people do actually think that UX is about making things pretty. While aesthetics, or the visual appeal of a product, are undoubtedly important, UX goes beyond surface-level beauty and delves deeper into functionality, user interactions, and efficiency.

UX designers are primarily focused on creating a product or service that provides an optimal user experience, this means:

• Ensuring that users can easily accomplish their goals,
• That the product or service is intuitive and user-friendly, and
• That it efficiently meets their needs.

Aesthetic considerations, like choosing color schemes or fonts, are just one aspect of UX design, but they are not the central concern. This emphasis on functionality and user-centric design is what sets UX apart from UI design.

3. UX is not Design Thinking

I’m guilty of this one, I used to define UX as a methodology that implements the Design Thinking process in order to solve problems. Albeit being related as they share a user-centered approach and overlap in a significant number of attributes, both concepts are distinct from each other in the realm of design and innovation. Let’s break this distinction down as follows:

Focus and Scope:

• UX design is a specialized field primarily concerned with the user’s interaction with a product or service. It focuses on creating a seamless and enjoyable user experience through the design of interfaces, interaction flows, and information architecture.
• Design Thinking is a broader methodology used for creative problem-solving in various domains, not limited to user interfaces. It addresses complex, often ambiguous problems and aims to generate innovative solutions. It emphasizes empathy, defining problems, ideation, and prototyping.

Approach:

• UX design is more execution-focused. It involves practical tasks like wireframing, prototyping, usability testing, and user research. It aims to create a user interface that is intuitive and efficient.
• Design Thinking is a conceptual and strategic approach that guides the overall creative process. It encourages a deep understanding of the problem space, thinking outside the box, and iterating on ideas. It is less concerned with execution details.

Iteration:

• UX design often follows a linear process, moving from research to design to testing and refinement. It is a more structured and iterative approach.
• Design Thinking is highly iterative. It involves multiple rounds of problem reframing, ideation, and testing to generate and refine innovative solutions.

Applicability:

• UX design is highly applicable in the context of product development, especially when the primary goal is to create user-friendly interfaces for digital products.
• Design Thinking is applicable to a wide range of challenges beyond product design, including business strategy, social issues, and services. It’s a versatile problem-solving methodology.

Both concepts represent two distinct stages in the design process, Design Thinking usually initiates the journey by focusing on the early stages of problem definition, where the emphasis lies in understanding the user’s needs and defining the challenges at hand. It’s about gaining insights and empathizing with users before diving into specific design solutions.

In contrast, UX Design takes the baton after the problem space has been defined. It’s all about the practical application of design principles to craft a user-friendly solution, incorporating everything learned from the Design Thinking phase.

The outputs of each concept are different, UX Design is more about the product while Design Thinking is more about the strategy, they do match each other, but are not the same thing, and much like the distinction between UX and UI, they are not interchangeable. Still, when applied together they do give great results.

4. UX is not a Mindset

In essence, UX is a strategic operation with a plethora of distinct methods, techniques, and deliverables that might be suitable for certain initiatives but not applicable to others. It all depends on the project you are working on today, it is more likely than not that when working on different projects you’ll find that UX can easily change.

For example, when developing mobile applications for two different organizations, UX considerations will significantly differ on factors such as the target audience, stakeholder involvement, user demographics, the size and structure of the institution, corporate objectives, as well as the technological capacities and limitations at play. Here, the methods, techniques, and priorities in UX will diverge to cater to the specific needs of each project.

The dynamism of UX is grounded in its user-centered approach, Steve Portigal’s insights in “Doorbells, Danger, and Dead Batteries: User Research War Stories” underscore its nature as far from being universal. Instead, it is a highly adaptable discipline that calls for customized approaches to different situations as we delve deep into understanding the specific needs and goals of users, which can vary significantly from one context to another, what delights users in an e-commerce platform may not be suitable for a healthcare app, and this understanding drives the need for tailoring our methodology, techniques, and deliverables.

Therefore, UX is not something you can templatize and make it conform to a one-size-fits-all mindset. Its dynamic nature emphasizes its adaptability to various contexts, making it a strategic and versatile discipline tailored to the unique requirements of each endeavor.

5. UX is not Just “One Thing”

As mentioned earlier, UX is an umbrella term that refers to a lot of different methods, techniques, and deliverables that are put together in order to devise an experience or optimize it.

The landscape of UX is multifaceted and encompasses various key tenets that are fundamental to creating effective and user-centric designs. Roughly speaking, UX includes six key tenets: Research, Information Architecture, Heuristics and Usability, Interface and Interactive Design, Design Strategy, Design Methodology, Behavioral Psychology, and Analytics.

Research:

Research is the #1 foundation of user-centric design, and it is far more vast than most people think, the latest version of the book “Universal Methods of Design” mentions 125 different methods and techniques associated with UX research alone.

UX researchers spend the majority of their time in research during a project’s lifecycle and tend to use around 5 to 20 different methodologies that involve understanding their users’ needs, behaviors, moods, backgrounds, pain points, and preferences in order to make informed design decisions.

Information Architecture:

Information architecture (IA) is all about organizing and structuring content within a product to make it easily navigable for users. It involves creating sitemaps, taxonomies, and content hierarchies. IA ensures that users can find information intuitively, enhancing their overall experience.

A successful information architect requires an understanding of how people seek out information, which requires the use of a few unique research methods like Card Sorting or Tree Testing. It’s also worth noting that standard user research methods (e.g. usability testing) usually generate useful findings about IA.

Heuristics and Usability:

Often referred to as Usability Heuristics, these are a set of principles or rules of thumb that guide designers and evaluators in assessing the usability of a user interface. Essentially, these principles do not consist of strict rules but rather best practices and guidelines that provide a framework for creating user-friendly designs.

These heuristics address crucial aspects such as maintaining visibility of the system’s status, assessing users’ control and freedom in their interactions, and proactively averting errors, all with the overarching aim of elevating usability.

Among these, Jakob Nielsen’s set of usability heuristics stands out as a widely recognized and respected reference. Designers often employ these principles as a comprehensive checklist during interface evaluations or as a guiding beacon in the design process.

Interface and Interactive Design:

This tenet focuses on creating the visual elements of a user interface, such as buttons, icons, color schemes, and typography. It’s about making the interface aesthetically pleasing while maintaining usability. Interactive design involves designing how users interact with the product, including touchpoints, feedback, and user flows.

The deliverables encompass a range of elements that form the foundation of a user interface. These deliverables may include wireframes, mockups, and prototypes that provide a visual representation of the interface’s layout, elements, and aesthetics. They serve as a reference for developers and ensure a cohesive design throughout the development process. Additionally, style guides and design systems detail the color schemes, typography, and visual guidelines that maintain consistency in the user interface’s appearance.

In terms of interactive design, deliverables extend to user flows and specifications that define how users will engage with the product. Interactive prototypes and animations are used to demonstrate how user interactions will work, helping to refine the user experience.

These deliverables play a crucial role in conveying the intended design to the development team and ensuring that the final product aligns with the design vision, providing a seamless and user-friendly experience.

Design Strategy:

Design strategy is about aligning the design process with the overall business goals of the company. It includes defining the product’s vision, goals, niche, how it will meet users’ needs, and how it is going to distinguish the company from its competitors in the market.

UX, being a strategic operation, translates these insights to create products and services that align with user expectations, enhance user satisfaction and engagement, and drive the overall success of the business by finding the “sweet spot” where both interests converge.

Design Methodology:

Design methodology refers to the systematic approach to the design process. Typically, UX designers follow a structured methodology that includes stages like research, ideation, prototyping, testing, and iteration.

In recent years, the growing recognition of UX as a driver of innovation and business success has led to the development of various methodologies and models that offer more sophisticated and structured approaches to the design process, these include Lean UX, Agile UX, and DesignOps.

Each methodology is tailored to specific contexts, contingent on factors such as team size, the company’s maturity, project complexity, and the pace of the market. These frameworks have emerged as essential tools to meet the evolving demands of the UX landscape and align design strategies with broader business goals.

Behavioral Psychology:

Understanding user behavior is a key aspect of UX. Behavioral psychology principles are used to predict and interpret user actions. For example, understanding Robert Cialdini’s psychology of persuasion and the power of influence allows us to guide user decisions within a product, and insights from Gad Saad’s theory of evolutionary psychology in the business sciences enable us to shape products that resonate with users’ intrinsic desires and motivations and how do they evolve over time.

Furthermore, cognitive psychology principles aid in designing interfaces that match how users perceive and process information. Applying these psychological insights helps in creating interfaces and experiences that are not just functional but also emotionally resonant, aligning with the core principles of UX.

Analytics:

UX professionals rely on data and analytics to continuously evaluate and improve user experiences. Analytics tools help in tracking user behavior, identifying trends, and measuring the effectiveness of design changes.

The aim of using analytics is to discover, interpret, and communicate significant patterns in automatically recorded data about real user interactions with our design. Analytics help us:

• Discover which places (pages or screens) our users visit the most and at which places they leave,
• They can tell us about which elements our users interact with and what actions they take when interacting with our product,
• With analytics, we also can figure out the paths our users usually take to achieve their goals and where they go next. and finally,
• Analytics help us understand the people who interact with our product, we can learn about their demographics and how different user groups behave differently, and track how these behaviors change over time.

Gathering information about these topics can benefit our UX work in three primary ways:

1. It can reduce opinion-based decision-making, allowing us to make more objective decisions.
2. Insights from analytics can help us prioritize our projects, thus focusing our attention and effort on what would make the biggest impact and most likely the highest reward.
3. Allows us to experiment with our design through methods such as A/B Testing or Split Testing, where we can test different designs and objectively see which performs best.

6. UX is not UX if it Doesn’t Include “Actual” Users

One of the recent developments that has gained prominence recently is the utilization of Artificial Intelligence (AI) across various domains. AI-driven technologies, particularly chatbots like ChatGPT, have rapidly evolved and become integral in assisting us with our work.

However, it’s essential to note that even in this AI-driven landscape, genuine user input remains irreplaceable, you cannot just simply ask AI to act as a persona to answer your interview questions and tell you about its needs and pain points, taking such shortcut will only be detrimental to your output and ultimately damage and undervalue the integrity of your work.

While AI can be a powerful tool in providing instant responses and support, these systems lack the depth of understanding and empathy that human users bring to the table. Actual users, with their unique perspectives, emotions, and nuances, remain central to UX. Their feedback, preferences, and pain points are invaluable for shaping meaningful and user-centric design.

Integrating AI into the UX process should complement and enhance user engagement rather than replace the essential role that real users play. Balancing these elements ensures that AI enriches the user experience without losing sight of the genuine human interactions that drive UX forward.

Final Thoughts

UX is not static; it shifts, adapts, and evolves with technological advancements and constantly changing user expectations, which makes the discipline more than just a field of study, it is a dynamic approach to creating products and services that genuinely serve their intended audience.

UX DESIGN REFERS TO THE SET OF METHODS AND TECHNIQUES USED TO FIND THE “SWEET SPOT” BETWEEN USER NEEDS, BUSINESS GOALS, AND VARIOUS TYPES OF CONSTRAINTS.

IT AIMS TO CREATE SOLUTIONS THAT MEET FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS AND PROVIDE A SEAMLESS AND ENJOYABLE EXPERIENCE FOR THE END-USERS.

UX’s core essence is all about empathy and understanding, and for as long as there are humans interacting with technology, the need for UX remains unwavering. It’s a journey, not a destination, and it’s one that will keep evolving to meet the needs of users in an ever-changing digital landscape.

UX demands keeping our curiosity alive, continually expanding our horizons, and immersing ourselves in various knowledge streams. Whether it’s delving into the psychology of human behavior, staying up to date with the latest design trends, or exploring adjacent fields like AI, sociology, or even anthropology, the more we learn and embrace diverse perspectives, the better equipped we are to create truly exceptional user experiences.