Relation Between Interaction Design, User Experiences & Human Computer Interaction
This is a question we hear a lot. Unfortunately there’s no simple answer to this question. Firstly, that’s because there’s no globally agreed definition of the three terms. That means that our explanation often needs to change depending on the user’s perspective. Secondly, it’s also because there’s a lot of common area between the three fields even when using the most common definitions.
Some simple definitions:
Interaction Design
Definition of IxD: “Interaction Design (IxD) defines the structure and behavior of interactive systems. Interaction Designers strive to create meaningful relationships between people and the products and services that they use, from computers to mobile devices to appliances and beyond. Our practices are evolving with the world.”- from ixda.org
IxD designer is the people in charge of the websites/apps moving elements & interactions. If you’ve seen a cool animation on a website or app, that made you say wow or that is really cool, that’s the stuff motion designers do.
A design craft that deals with interaction, which isn’t a term specific to computers. This could be the interaction between a customer and a checkout line, between a caller and a customer service agent, or a barista and his coffee maker.
User Experiences (UX)
According to a study from the Oxford Journal Interacting With Computers:
The goal of UX design in business is to “improve customer satisfaction and loyalty through the utility, ease of use, and pleasure provided in the interaction with a product.”
In other words, UX design is the process of designing (digital or physical) products that are useful, easy to use, and delightful to interact with. It’s about enhancing the experience that people have while interacting with your product, and making sure they find value in what you’re providing.
But unfortunately, that isn’t a comprehensive explanation of UX design either. So to help you get a better understanding of what it really is, we reached out to 1 thought leaders in the space and asked them:
“User Experience Design (UXD or UED) is a design process whose sole objective is to design a system that offers a great experience to its users. Thus UXD embraces the theories of a number of disciplines such as user interface design, usability, accessibility, information architecture, and Human Computer Interaction. — Justin Mifsud, Founder of Usability Geek
Human-Computer Interaction
According to ACM’s definition, HCI is a discipline that concerned with design, evaluation, and implementation of interactive computing systems for human use and with the study of major phenomena surrounding them. It researches the design and use of computer of technology, focusing on the interface between user and computer. Researchers observe both the way in which human interact with computers and design technology that human interact in a novel way. Read more
So in an oversimplified, UX Design is how a user feels about the apps, Interaction Design is how the user and app act and react to each other and Human-computer interaction is about paying attention to people and their relationship with computing.
Also, this illustration can be a little illustrating about UX and IxD.
Footnote:
Course: Psychology of Interaction Design: The Ultimate Guide:
https://www.interaction-design.org/courses/psychology-of-interaction-design-the-ultimate-guide
Course: User Experience: The Beginner’s Guide:
https://www.interaction-design.org/courses/user-experience-the-beginner-s-guide
