This PowerPoint highlights the user research methods I used for a design course that I took at the University of Washington.

1. Karishma Patel
HCDE 210 AF
User Research:
Commuting

2. Memo: Method
■ Location of observations: Café Solstice patio seating area on University Way NE
– I chose this as my observation location because there is a bus stop right in front of this café. By sitting
outside, I was able to observe people waiting for their buses as well as people who got off of the buses
that stopped.
■ Date/Time: Sunday, February 12th, 2017 from
2:50PM to 3:27PM
– I chose this as my time of study because it was a
nice day outside so I assumed that there would be
more people out and about.
■ Type of field notes used: Bulleted descriptions
with underlining and some small sketches
– I decided to organize my notes in this manner
because it was easy for me to quickly jot down
observations as they were happening. I included
underlining so that I could clearly see common
practices throughout my observations. (Some parts
of my notes were unclear so that is why I included
short sketches.)

3. Memo: Practice 1
■ People wearing earbuds/headphones and using their
cellphones.
– I found this to be a common practice because almost every person I
observed at the bus stop was using their phone in some sort of way.
– There were also a lot of people wearing earbuds/headphone sets, one girl
was using her earbuds to talk on the phone.
– Both people who were standing and sitting at the bus stop were doing this
practice. Also, it occurred in people who were waiting for their bus as well as
people who got off of buses at this stop.
– This made the bus stop feel isolated from the rest of the street because
nobody using their phones at the stop was interacting with anything other
than their phones. There were many conversations and situations happening
around the bus stop, but it felt like it was its own little island.

4. Memo: Practice 2
■ People squinting in the sunlight while waiting for their bus.
– Surprisingly, there were a lot of people squinting while they were waiting for
their bus.
– Sunday was an extremely sunny day, so the people at the bus stop were
squinting while doing various things. From looking at their phones, to talking
to other people, and even looking at the bus stop sign, everyone seemed to
be struggling to keep their eyes fully opened.
– People who were waiting for their buses came over to the patio that I was
standing at to seek shade from the sun. Some riders even used their hands
to shield the sun from their eyes while talking to others.
– This practice made the bus stop look uncomfortable because nobody
seemed to want to wait for their bus out in the sun.

5. Memo: Practice 3
■ Some riders were confused about the sign at the bus stop.
– There was a specific incident where two women who were travelling together
were trying to figure out what bus to take. They had difficulty understanding
the sign and were unsure if this was their stop. (Lasted about five minutes.)
– At another time, there were two young men who were also travelling together,
and one of them was trying to read the sign too. He asked his friend about it
and they both looked at it. The friend later on responded to the question and
said, “I’m not sure.”
– The uncertainty of whether or not this is the right bus stop for passengers to
be at can add unnecessary stress to travel plans. It almost made the bus
stop have a tense vibe in contrary to the rest of the street, which was more
calm and relaxed.

6. Memo: Interesting Practice
■ The practice that I found to be the most interesting was that
majority of the people waiting at the bus stop were squinting.
– A design challenge that would be associated with this practice would be the
changing the infrastructure of the shelter provided at the bus stop. In order to
successfully come up with a new design, it may be necessary to consult
architects and officials that work for the city of Seattle.
– Some research directions that could help with this challenge would be to
survey the passengers waiting at the bus stop by asking questions about
their level of comfort, ability to see, and maybe even looking at potential new
designs for the bus stop.

7. Field Notes Appendix

8. Field Notes Appendix (contd.)

9. Field Notes Appendix (contd.)