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The Hidden Plot Device Stephanie Troeth @sniffles Beyond Tellerrand Berlin November 2015

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In the spring of 2013, I was in Belgrade for a conference.

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Photo credit: Lošmi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgrade#/media/File:The_confluence_of_the_Sava_into_the_Danube_at_Belgrade.jpg

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Photo credit: Vladimir Nolic https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgrade#/media/File:Belgrade_Panorama.jpg

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What is a story?

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“The cat sat on the mat” is not the beginning of a story, but “the cat sat on the dog’s mat” is. — John le Carré

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Are we … programmed? Hardwired?

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“We are programmed through our evolutionary biology to be both consumers and creators of story.” — Jonah Sachs, “Winning the Story Wars”

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The word “hardwired” crops up …a lot.

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“Narrative can offer us either particular social information to guide immediate decisions or general principles we can apply in future circumstances.” — Brian Boyd, “On the Origin of Stories”

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Stories are a cognitive framework to help us make sense of our world across time, space and social constructs.

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“Stories are like flight simulators for the brain.” — “Made to Stick”, Chip & Dan Heath.

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Universal stories? Book icon by Tyrus for The Noun Project

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Aristotle simple tragic simple fortunate complex tragic complex fortunate

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Aristotle simple tragic simple fortunate complex tragic complex fortunate 4

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Norman Friedman action plot pathetic plot tragic plot punitive plot sentimental plot …

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Norman Friedman action plot pathetic plot tragic plot punitive plot sentimental plot … 14

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Robert McKee love story horror film modern epic western war genre …

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Robert McKee love story horror film modern epic western war genre … 25

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Kurt Vonnegut on the Shapes of Stories

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Three lessons from Vonnegut

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An individual’s point of view

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Emotional energy time fortune

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Good things come in threes!

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Good fortune Ill fortune Beginning End "Man in hole" "Boy Meets Girl" Cinderella

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Three acts: Beginning, middle and end.

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Act 1: Setting it up. What is the context? Who is the main protagonist? What does he or she desire?

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Act 2: Conflict & Obstacles Crisis and escalating tension. Things get dramatic!

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Act 3: Finale Things get as intense as it can go. When the story finally resolves, tension dissipates. Leave your audience in a safe place.

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Exposition/ Set-up Confrontation / Rising action tension Resolution / Falling action Act 1 Act 2 Act 3 Beginning End Middle Turning point Turning point Inciting incident Second thoughts Obstacle Obstacle Obstacle Disaster Crisis Midpoint (twist) Dénouément Climax time

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How does this knowledge of stories enhances what we do in UX?

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problem space solution space research design modelling listening telling

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When we design, we are looking to help people make better decisions.

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When we conduct research, we are seeking to understand how people arrive at decisions.

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attitudinal vs. behavioural Understanding narrative-based decision making Beyond

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Story is the ultimate mental model.

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How … and when?

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research design listening

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Listening: Frame the design problem Gather information on user context, motivation, circumstance and behaviour Surveys interviews usability testing analytics user data contextual inquiry

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Use a story framework to ensure you get the full picture from your design research. influential people? Check Mark icon by Darren Wilson for The Noun Project causality? circumstance?

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character plot place Gregg Mosse’s story source triangle

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The Switch Interview by Bob Moesta & Chris Spiek http://jobstobedone.org/ Audio example: http://jobstobedone.org/radio/iphone-jobs-to-be-done-interview/

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Timeline Jobs-to-be-done Timeline http://jobstobedone.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/jtbd-timeline.png

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Use stories to communicate research insights. Use your powers of narration. the customer documentary Check Mark icon by Darren Wilson for The Noun Project

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With thanks to Richard Hewitt, Aarron Walter/MailChimp and Clearleft.

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“What drives your train?” What produces the emotional energy?

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Plot, character, or question? circumstance cause time issue person

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research design modelling listening

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Modelling: Translate findings and insights Construct user models personas customer journey maps mental models empathy maps user journeys

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Use a range of story aspects as core tenets for a comprehensive user model, especially points of view. cover your bases Check Mark icon by Darren Wilson for The Noun Project

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after during before touchpoints activities emotions Customer journey maps Musketeer icon by Simon Child for The Noun Project

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Timeline Jobs-to-be-done Timeline http://jobstobedone.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/jtbd-timeline.png

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https://mkuphal.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/us.jpg User Story

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https://blog.intercom.io/using-job-stories-design-features-ui-ux/ Job Story

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• A persona is a model of a character • A customer journey map is a model of a character’s journey, therefore a plot • A user story is a description of a character’s goal • A job story describes a set of user’s situations, motivation and expected outcome — place and plot.

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Character User Plot Circumstance Place Context Question Issue / struggle Drama Consequence of decisions Characters Influencers

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“Drama comes from human decisions.” — Matthew Hall

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Victim Persecutor Rescuer Karpman’s Drama Triangle Voodoo Doll icon by Samu Parra for the Noun Project

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Part of our job is to find and document the points of conflict … so we can resolve them.

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research design modelling listening telling

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Telling: Explore solutions or responses Explore expression sketches style tiles mood boards prototypes mockups storyboards

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What happened to storytelling in design? Stop icon by Alex Audo Samora for the Noun Project

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http://airbnb.com/

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http://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/2015-09-11/cya

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http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/29/upshot/obamacare-who-was-helped-most.html

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http://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2015-whats-warming-the-world/

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There is a tendency to talk about story in design as if it’s something flattened on a screen. Devices icon by Pham Thi Dieu Linh for the Noun Project

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http://beyondtellerrand.com/events/berlin-2015/speakers/steve-and-mark Steve Souders & Mark Zeman

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In your user’s mind, the story begins before they arrive at your app and can continue long after they leave.

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encounter begins somewhere here service story time content story time spent on your app or your website visual story brand story

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hero!

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hero!

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character place

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character

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character + place

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Use story elements to: a story is incomplete without an audience Check Mark icon by Darren Wilson for The Noun Project 1. To suggest a story, or; 2. To drive a story forward.

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character / role plot / time place

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“What drives your train?” Plot, character, or question? circumstance cause time issue person

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02l40d5 Audio snippet: Bridget Kendall interviews Will Self on story

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Thank you! Stephanie Troeth @sniffles