“Designing something without understanding the ramifications of what it does is as unethical as designing something you know to be harmful.”
“Ruined by Design” by Mike Monteiro
Cambridge Analytica, Facebook, and the US elections. Silicon Valley gatekeeping. Surveillance of capitalism. Fake news, misinformation, and filter bubbles. Increasing levels of anxiety and depression. ?
As a UX designer and instructor, I would be remiss to ignore the so-called dark side of the industry. As budding UX professionals, you have a responsibility to understand the ramifications of what you design. Behind intelligent interfaces and addictive experiences, a dark and seedy underbelly lurks.
As Don Norman aptly writes in The Design of Everyday Things, “Don’t criticize unless you can do better.” We’ll examine ethical concerns, but we won’t stop there. We’ll brainstorm and ideate solutions. We’ll discuss practical ways to implement ethics by design. But first, read some of these hot-bed UX issues for yourself. (Yes, these are all required readings!)