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Evidence-Based Design Decisions

Evidence-based design means making your choices not just on intuition, but on data, feedback, and analysis from your design process. Instead of saying “I think this works,” you can point to evidence that supports your decision. For example, when testing two versions of an interactive prototype, you might see that users complete tasks faster with one version. That evidence justifies why you continue with that option.

Why is this relevant to you? As a Creative Technologist, your projects often combine creativity with technology. Evidence-based design helps you communicate why your solution makes sense, gain trust from stakeholders, and improve your outcomes systematically. It turns design into a transparent process where others can see the reasoning behind your choices.

Starting Points

  • Collect data from your process.
    Example: use user feedback forms, sensor measurements, or logs of interactions.
  • Analyze results and look for patterns.
    Example: if 8 out of 10 users fail to notice a button, you know it is not visible enough.
  • Translate insights into design decisions.
    Example: based on feedback, you increase the contrast of the button to make it stand out.

Key Points

  • You connect your design choices directly to evidence from tests, research, or feedback.
  • You document both the evidence and the decision so the reasoning is clear.
  • You avoid personal bias: instead of “I like this,” you use “The data shows this works better.”
  • You reflect critically: is the evidence reliable and sufficient, or do you need more testing?

The Role of Designer’s Intuition

Evidence is powerful, but not everything can be measured directly. Sometimes you rely on your expertise, creativity, or gut feeling as a designer. This is called designer’s intuition. For example, when choosing a color scheme for an interface, your experience with visual design might guide you before any user test is done.

Intuition becomes especially valuable in early stages of design, when there is little evidence available, or when you explore new, speculative directions. The important part is to make your intuition explicit: explain why you feel a choice fits, and later check if evidence supports or challenges it.

Key Balance:
- Use intuition to make creative leaps and propose bold ideas.
- Use evidence to test, refine, and justify those ideas.
- Show awareness of when a decision is based on intuition, and when on evidence.

Mini Case

A student team was designing a smart mirror that gives motivational quotes. They created two prototypes: one with large text and animations, and another with smaller text and simple transitions. During user testing, 70% of participants said the animations were distracting and reported that they preferred the simpler version. Based on this evidence, the team decided to move forward with the minimal design.

At the same time, the team’s designer had an intuitive feeling that softer colors would better fit the calming purpose of the mirror. This intuition was not yet tested, but it was noted as a design hypothesis. In the next iteration, they applied the softer colors and gathered new feedback, combining intuition with evidence to reach a stronger result.