CONCEPTUALIZE Storytelling, Scenarios, Human values Storytelling Perspectives from Psychological Science and Design Psychological Science of Stories Two Modes of Thought •  Jerome Bruner (1915-‐ ), NYU •  ParadigmaDc vs NarraDve –  “diﬀerent natural kinds” ParadigmaDc Mode •  The mode of raDonal argument –  “Say no more than they mean” –  Cause-‐and-‐eﬀect relaDonships –  PredicDon –  Hypotheses that are •  Speciﬁc •  Falsiﬁable •  Unambiguously phrased ParadigmaDc Mode •  The mode of raDonal argument –  Quality is judged by outcome – did it work/was it correct? –  Seeks to “transcend the parDcular” –  Truth NarraDve Mode •  The mode of stories –  “Mean more than they say” –  “human or humanlike intenDon and acDon and the vicissitudes and consequences that mark their course” –  Two broad tasks: capture the “landscape of acDon” and the “landscape of consciousness” –  Seeks to capture the speciﬁc, personal, contextualized NarraDve Mode •  The mode of stories –  Quality is judged by •  Coherence •  Believability •  Support the well-‐being of the narrator –  truth(s) (a quick aside, so you’re not confused about what Jon’s research is…) •  You can use narraDves as data for paradigmaDc research (what Jon does) •  A science of subjec,ve meaning-‐making •  SubjecDve meaning-‐making ma\ers a lot for your mental health Mental Health Agency Why Should We Care About Stories? •  “The Stories We Live By” (McAdams, 1993) / “The Most Important FicDon” (Adler, 2010) •  Whether or not they’re true in an objecDve (“paradigmaDc truth”) sense, we place a lot of personal meaning in them (“narraDve truth”) •  That meaning does have true, objecDve impacts on things we care about (like mental health) –  Example from Jon’s research The Human Brain is Wired for Stories •  All kinds of coherence biases –  SensaDon versus PercepDon Storytelling is the Mode of Human InteracDon •  Stories don’t just exist in a vacuum, they are told –  First in the individual’s own mind –  Then to others, where they get feedback Telling Stories •  We tell stories –  90% of emoDonal experiences are disclosed within a few days of occurrence (Rimé et al, 1991) –  62% of “most memorable event of the day” told by end of that day (Pasupathi et al., 2007) –  Untold memories are more likely to be forgo\en and deemed less important (Pasupathi et al., 2007) QuesDons to Consider in Phase 2 that are Directly Drawn from Psychology •  Are my users telling me stories or just reporDng? –  Aim for stories •  What kinds of stories are my users telling and enacDng (journeys)? •  What kinds of stories would my users like to be living? Storytelling and Design Writing Scenarios What is a narraDve? An account of a series of events, experiences, etc., given in order and with the establishing of connections between them The Oxford English DicDonary A scenario is a narraDve An account of a series of events, experiences, etc., given in order and with the establishing of connections between them The Oxford English DicDonary Beginning Persona with a moDvaDon Middle in a context End has an outcome What is a narraDve? Beginning Persona with a moDvaDon Emo3on Middle End in a context has an outcome Experience Goals achieved? Emo3on Emo3on How to construct your scenario Who Marcus, small bakery owner with li\le markeDng experDse Why To promote his business Context No Dme to create ﬂashy emails Not good at craming the words Writes the emails during quiet periods in the bakery. He opens the email applicaDon and chooses a template to get started. Where What else is going on? How to construct your scenario Who Marcus, small business owner with li\le markeDng experDse Why To bring more people into his bakery. Context Where What else is going on? He has a quiet moment in the shop. Jane, his part-‐Dme shop assistant, is helping customers. SDll, he feels pressed for Dme and doesn’t know where to start. How does he feel? He wishes the email could just write itself. Then what happens? Tips for wriDng scenarios •  •  •  •  •  •  •  List moDvaDons, acDons and context Integrate values into the story Review the persona you are wriDng about Be concrete and descripDve Verbs over nouns Keep them short Don’t get hung up, JUST WRITE A “recipe” for wriDng scenarios •  Who – pick a persona, use their name •  Where – locaDon, sepng, who else is involved •  Why – what triggers the interacDon or need? What is their moDvaDon? –  How do they feel as they are engaging in the experience? Are their values impacDng their response? –  What happens next? Why use stories? Because experiences take place over Dme To transform the abstract to something concrete To put yourself in the shoes of your personas To communicate your ideas To envision the experience To envision the future Scenarios are sketches Scenarios evolve Scenarios are genera8ve Scenarios and co-‐design Scenarios help communicate your vision to your people group Liz Sanders. Designing with Users Creating Conceptual Comics: Kevin Cheng and Jane Jao What a scenario does for you The fanciful horizon Don’t hold back •  Be aspiraDonal and idealisDc •  Make your people group’s lives really diﬀerent •  Connect to the fanciful horizon •  Look 10 years out – what can be •  Be imaginaDve •  Make it magical Human values Values can be defined as Broad preferences concerning appropriate courses of action or outcomes Reflect a person’s sense of right and wrong or what “ought” to be Tend to influence attitudes and behavior “Equal rights for all” "Excellence deserves admiration” “People should be treated with respect and dignity” source: wikipedia Values… ...are beliefs. But they are beliefs tied inextricably to emotion, not objective, cold ideas. …are a motivational construct. They refer to the desirable goals people strive to attain. …transcend specific actions and situations. They are abstract goals. The abstract nature of values distinguishes them from concepts like norms and attitudes, which usually refer to specific actions, objects, or situations. …guide the selection or evaluation of actions, policies, people, and events. That is, values serve as standards or criteria. …are ordered by importance relative to one another. People’s values form an ordered system of value priorities that characterize them as individuals. This hierarchical feature of values also distinguishes them from norms and attitudes. source: S. H. Schwartz, Basic Human Values: An Overview Invasive Species Removers source: www.fws.gov Invasive Species Removers Values… ...are beliefs. …are a motivational construct. …transcend specific actions and situations. …guide the selection or evaluation of actions… …are ordered by importance relative to one another. Identify three values that might be held by this people group source: www.fws.gov 1.  Pointers towards areas of opportunity 2.  Screening and assessing ideas Get along? “Family” “Hard work” “The environment” Why? source: S. H. Schwartz, Basic Human Values: An Overview Hedonism self-centered sensual gratification Self Enhancement Achievement competitive personal success Power status and prestige, control people and resources Conservation Security stability, safety, and harmony of society, relationships, and self Conformity self-restraint and subordination of one’s own inclinations to the expectations of others Tradition traditional and religious activities Self-Transcendence Benevolence preserve and enhance welfare of those with whom one is in frequent personal contact Universalism tolerance and concern for welfare of all others Openness to Change Self-direction autonomous thought and action (idea of agency) Stimulation encourage risk taking and adventure source: S. Hitlin and J. A. Piliavin, VALUES: Reviving a Dormant Concept Benevolence Achievement Power and Conformity “Family” “Hard work” “The environment” source: S. H. Schwartz, Basic Human Values: An Overview Reflections Q&A