Articulating Experience: Reflections from Experts Applying Micro-Phenomenology to Design Research in HCI

Interviews with five HCI/Design experts who use micro-phenomenology reveal how this qualitative method helps articulate users' nuanced, complex experiences beyond surface descriptions. The method, used in HCI/Design research since 2001, unfolds conditions for describing experience and provides value by developing vocabulary for multi-sensory experiences and uncovering embodied tacit knowledge. The findings highlight micro-phenomenology's role in articulating the experiences of both designers and participants, contributing to a deeper understanding of user experience in design contexts.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Third wave HCI initiated a slow transformation in the methods of UX research: from widely used quantitative approaches to more recently employed qualitative techniques. Articulating the nuances, complexity, and diversity of a user's experience beyond surface descriptions remains a challenge within design. One qualitative method — micro-phenomenology — has been used in HCI/Design research since 2001. Yet, no systematic understanding of micro-phenomenology has been presented, particularly from the perspective of HCI/Design researchers who actively use it in design contexts. We interviewed 5 HCI/Design experts who utilize micro-phenomenology and present their experiences with the method. We illustrate how this method has been applied by the selected experts through developing a practice, and present conditions under which the descriptions of the experience unfold, and the values that this method can provide to HCI/Design field. Our contribution highlights the value of micro-phenomenology in articulating the experience of designers and participants, developing vocabulary for multi-sensory experiences, and unfolding embodied tacit knowledge.