IXD304 – Cindy Chastain – Thinking Like a Storyteller

In the world of interaction design, storytelling is a fundamental aspect of communication. It can introduce users to information and help navigate through design to create an informative experience. In this video that Kyle has recommended to us, Cindy Chastain will talk about the understanding of narrative techniques which can help me as a designer to better understand the emotional impact of interactions and design.

To start this video Cindy talks about the mental value of storytelling in interaction design. Some people acknowledge its value however, some people are more cautious of its fitting. Before watching this video, I never really took the word storytelling into consideration while designing my projects. I always transpired them as what Cindy calls “Weasel Words” such as design thinking or even innovation. However, after a small bit of thought, it becomes more clear what the word actually means and the relevancy to IXD.

Cindy explains how stories in IXD are ingrained at face value throughout our work, one side would be considered as communication tools this includes user stories, personas, scenarios, storyboards, etc. The other half are considered frameworks such as brand stories and product stories. However, there is an alternative that is rarely considered; the user’s narrative, these stories are a more defined and personal set of stories. As a designer, we create around the user and avoid biases of our own. We take into account the implications of our design choices and hope that it is relevant and formable. This method of understanding a user’s narrative creates a more defined and personal connection and affects features we include and how this will benefit the user and their lives.

Many industries have a certain structure or discipline to follow when it comes to storytelling, for example, writers like journalists, etc are writing to revolve a sense of connection in their work; to create emotional impact. We can see this in everyday life, the tone, language and meaning behind articles are always present no matter how unbiased the news source is. A more prominent industry is the film industry. Cindy shows us a few snapshots of the Good, the Bad & the Ugly. Using a method called slow disclosure it uses unprovoked and illiterate shots (usually at the beginning) to create an ominous feel making the viewer guess and use their cognitive ability to understand the situation as much as possible.  These are excellent for engaging the emotions of the viewers and invoking thought and discussion around the scene.

Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher theorized that all stories are, “in their general conception, modes of imitation.” which are divided into objects, medium & manner, or in our case; people, digital environment & style. Cindy explains that manners of storytelling define two key groups which are diegetic and mimetic. Diegetic is the narrative of the story – commonly seen on user personas, etc. While mimetic is representing the behaviors of users – commonly seen with storyboards/comics.  The mimetic manner is usually shadowed by IXD designers as it isn’t used to show a linear goal but instead uses principles of probability to explore sequences from actions. As many people know story plots start with an equilibrium, a disruption in the equilibrium, recognition of the disruption, a climax and repeat. Aristotle discusses six qualitative elements that drive and narrate these fluctuations in story plots such as the events, characters, thoughts, diction, song and visuals – each force has a domino pattern that affects the story. However, how does this all relate to interactive products? Characters in stories are seen as users, they interact with opportunities (decisions) on a product that opens up to more routes until eventually they meet their goal and it becomes back to an equilibrium. This structure is extremely helpful to follow as it helps create a sense of narrative flow in a product.

Stories provide meaning,

Slow disclosure

Cues

 

 

Intro

Skepicism

 

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