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Applying HCI Methods and Concepts to Architectural Design (Or Why Architects Could Use HCI Even If They Don’t Know It)

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Architecture and Interaction

Part of the book series: Human–Computer Interaction Series ((HCIS))

Abstract

The act of designing a building is indirectly, but conceptually very closely, linked to the user experience of its final outcome. It is this experience which often constitutes a major criterion for assessing the quality of the architect’s work. And yet, it would be a gross overstatement to suggest that architectural design is a user-centered process.

On a more generic level, designing any physical object acting as a catalyst for the final experience can be viewed as an act of designing a human-artifact interaction where the ‘artifact’ (be it a building or a computer device) serves as an interface for the ultimate behavior or emotional reaction. This chapter argues, that the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) can be viewed as a source of inspiration for architects wishing to incorporate, or enhance, user-centric planning routines in their creative workflows.

Drawing from the methodological toolbox of HCI, we demonstrate how user-centric planning can be placed in a structured framework, with tested and easy-to-apply methods serving as the vehicle for holistic user-centered planning processes.

The chapter proposes a formal model for understanding usability and user experience in the architectural context, demonstrates a number of methods suitable for its application, and concludes with a case study of an attempted use of one of such methods in an award-winning (yet, not necessarily user-friendly) public library project.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Consider, for instance, the case of integrating alarm clocks into touch-screen-based devices, e.g. by means of a ‘wheel’ metaphor as used in an iPhone.

  2. 2.

    We will base further discussion on this particular work, although the reader should bear in mind that there are many approaches to UX design in HCI, some of which are less formalised than the one here cited.

  3. 3.

    Even if the goals are implicit.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Geoinformatics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany

    Jakub Krukar

  2. Department of Architecture and the Built Environment, University of Northumbria, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK

    Ruth Conroy Dalton

  3. Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

    Christoph Hölscher

Authors
  1. Jakub Krukar
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  2. Ruth Conroy Dalton
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  3. Christoph Hölscher
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jakub Krukar .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Comp Sci & Digi Tech, University of Northumbria, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

    Nicholas S. Dalton

  2. Mixed Reality Laboratory,Dep of Comp Sc, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom

    Holger Schnädelbach

  3. Department of Informatics, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

    Mikael Wiberg

  4. The Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London, London, United Kingdom

    Tasos Varoudis

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Krukar, J., Dalton, R.C., Hölscher, C. (2016). Applying HCI Methods and Concepts to Architectural Design (Or Why Architects Could Use HCI Even If They Don’t Know It). In: Dalton, N., Schnädelbach, H., Wiberg, M., Varoudis, T. (eds) Architecture and Interaction. Human–Computer Interaction Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-30028-3_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-30028-3_2

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-30028-3

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