Interface Design & Usability Principles

Question 1

What are Norman’s 6 interaction design principles?

Answer 1

Visibility, Affordance, Constraints, Consistency, Mapping, Feedback

Question 2

Visibility

Answer 2

How easy it is to see what you can do e.g. making functions/status clearly visible to users

Question 3

Visibility examples

Answer 3

+ Clean login screen with only essential fields
- Unclear clickable elements

Question 4

Visibility risks

Answer 4

Overloading users with info causing confusion

Question 5

Feedback

Answer 5

Immediate response to user actions (e.g. visual, audio)

Question 6

Feedback example

Answer 6

Message after a payment submission

Question 7

Feedback vs Visibility

Answer 7

Feedback is reactive (post-action), visibility is proactive (ongoing status)

Question 8

Feedback risk

Answer 8

Excessive feedback annoys users

Question 9

Constraints

Answer 9

Limit user actions to prevent errors

Question 10

Constraints examples

Answer 10

+ Disabling submit button until completion
+ Horizontal-only swipe in photo galleries

Question 11

Constraints risk

Answer 11

Over-restriction frustrates users

Question 12

Consistency

Answer 12

Uniformity in design (navigation, colours, buttons etc)

Question 13

Consistency examples

Answer 13

+ Same button styles across pages
+ Standard date format

Question 14

Consistency risk

Answer 14

Too much consistency stifles creativity

Question 15

Affordance

Answer 15

How the design suggests how to use an element

Question 16

Affordance types

Answer 16

+ Explicit: Obvious (e.g. login button)
+ Hidden: Revealed on hover (e.g. dropdown)
- False: Looks usable but isn’t (bad design)

Question 17

Affordance example

Answer 17

Trash bin icon = delete function

Question 18

Affordance risk

Answer 18

Poor affordance misleads users

Question 19

Mapping

Answer 19

How well controls match their effects intuitively

Question 20

Mapping example

Answer 20

Stove knobs aligned with burners, scrollbar position shows location on page

Question 21

Mapping risk

Answer 21

Poor managing causes errors (e.g. confusing button layout)

Question 22

How the principles work together

Answer 22

Visibility: shows what to do
Feedback: confirms actions
Affordance: guides interaction
Mapping: makes controls logical
Constraints: reduce mistakes
Consistency: builds user comfort

Question 23

Nielsen’s 10 usability heuristics

Answer 23

1. Consistency & standards
2. Help users recover from errors
3. Aesthetic, minimalist design
4. Match real-world conventions
5. Flexibility & efficiency
6. Error prevention
7. Recognition over recall
8. Help & documentation
9. User control & freedom
10. Visibility of system status

Question 24

Visibility of system status

Answer 24

progress bars

Question 25

Match real-world conventions

Answer 25

familiar terms/icons

Question 26

User control & freedom

Answer 26

undo options

Question 27

Consistency & standards

Answer 27

common ui patterns

Question 28

Error prevention

Answer 28

confirmation dialogs

Question 29

Recognition over recall

Answer 29

show options, don't rely on memory

Question 30

Flexibility & efficiency

Answer 30

shortcuts for experts

Question 31

Aesthetic, minimalist design

Answer 31

avoid clutter

Question 32

Help users recover from errors

Answer 32

clear error messages

Question 33

Help & documentation

Answer 33

accessible user guides

Question 34

Constraints vs Affordances

Answer 34

Constraints actively restrict, negative affordance visually implies restriction