1. Intercultural IA
Smitha Prasadh
SENIOR USER EXPERIENCE DESIGNER • AUTODESK • PITTSBURGH, PA
WORLD IA DAY PITTSBURGH 2016 // 2016 FEB 20http://www.adventuresofagoodman.com/rock-and-roll-photographer-for-a-day/

2. Information architecture
strategies for other cultures

3. Information architecture
strategies for other cultures
are the same as ours

4. Information architecture
strategies for other cultures
are the same as ours
because we (more or less)
started it.

5. http://www.2016.worldiaday.org
USA
Canada
Italy
Brazil
UK
25
3
3
2
2
Europe
Asia-Pacific
South America
Middle East
Africa
8
6
4
3
1
Total number of countries: 57
Today’s World IA Day events

6. http://www.2016.worldiaday.org + http://www.iainstitute.org/resources
USA
Canada
Australia
Italy
UK
Sweden
39
10
3
2
2
2
Brazil
Chile
Denmark
France
Poland
Online schools
1
1
1
1
1
16
Total number of schools: 79
...and schools that teach IA/Design

7. http://valeriebarkowski.com/laundry/

8. How can we approach IA
for diverse audiences?

9. Drawing inspiration from
intercultural communication

10. Intercultural communication
how people think
and communicate
culture +
language +
society
how people
react to design

11. https://anticap.wordpress.com/2010/09/19/poverty%E2%80%94uneven-demographics/
http://www.downwithdesign.com/inspiration/10-biggest-stock-photography-cliches/

12. GEERT HOFSTEDE
http://www.sietareu.org/63-general/congress-2015/film-festival-2015/725-an-engineer-s-odyssey

13. http://www.healthyplace.com/blogs/anxiety-schmanxiety/
2012/02/about-jodi-aman/
http://seattleunited.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/
U.S.-Womens-Soccer-Team-2014-Atlanta.jpg
INDIVIDUALISM VS. COLLECTIVISM

14. SETTING A TONE:
“our time-tested,
traditional
methods”
VS.
“what will you
accomplish
today?”
 tumblr.com  IF by IFTTT
/

15. http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc/index?id=1060484&siteID=123112
https://executivebusinessportraitsnewjersey.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/img_2014_pp-copy.
POWER DISTANCE

16. symbols
of authority
 ideo.com  deloitte.com
limiting
workflows /
content
by user type

17. https://www.vrtx.com/content/vertex-science-fair-
mentorship-showcase
http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Ignorant-Maestro-
Unpredictable-Brilliance-ebook/
UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE

18. emphasize clarity
warning messages
for unconventional
behaviors
 SPAIN  QATAR
cocacola.com
FULL INDEX.HTML OF
EACH COUNTRY’S SITE

20. http://www.discount-supplements.co.uk/blog/unleash-beast-within/
http://www.challengegym.co.uk/news/fit-fridays-in-february
MASCULINITY VS. FEMININITY

21. AESTHETICS:
“in your face”
VS.
“in our tummies”
 MEXICO  DENMARKkfc.com
/

22. http://www.korea.net/AboutKorea/Korean-Life/Festivals
https://skepticalsunday.wordpress.com/2014/10/18/skepsun-109-10_19_2014/
LONG-TERM VS. SHORT-TERM ORIENTATION

23. FORM DESIGN:
“it’ll be worth it”
VS.
“it’ll be over soon”
 JAPAN  HONG KONGstarbucks.com
/

24. INDIVIDUALISM vs. COLLECTIVISM
POWER DISTANCE
UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE
MASCULINITY vs. FEMININITY
LONG-TERM vs. SHORT-TERM
ORIENTATION
HOFSTEDE’S CULTURAL DIMENSIONS

25. INDIVIDUALISM vs. COLLECTIVISM
POWER DISTANCE
UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE
MASCULINITY vs. FEMININITY
LONG-TERM vs. SHORT-TERM
ORIENTATION
HOFSTEDE’S CULTURAL DIMENSIONS
 CAVEAT AND
CONTROVERSY

26. How do we carry this out
in our work?

27. Start with a cultural audit.

28. Start with a cultural audit,
and look for what’s the same
and what’s different.

29. Global product,
localized pieces
Several global templates,
with localized variants
Fully localized sites,
in line with the brand

30. http://infobeautiful4.s3.amazonaws.com/2015/05/1276_colours_in_culture.png
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Inkan.JPG
COLORS AND SYMBOLS

31. WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF CULTURAL IMAGERY FROM AMERICA?
SOURCE: THE AUTODESK RECAP TEAM

32. McDonald’s
Starbucks
Apple pie
Hamburgers
Guns
NASCAR
Baseball
SOURCE: THE AUTODESK RECAP TEAM
WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF CULTURAL IMAGERY FROM AMERICA?

33. McDonald’s
Starbucks
Apple pie
Hamburgers
Guns
NASCAR
Baseball
SOURCE: THE AUTODESK RECAP TEAM
WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF CULTURAL IMAGERY FROM AMERICA?

34. McDonald’s
Starbucks
Apple pie
Hamburgers
Guns
NASCAR
Baseball
Advertisements
for pharmaceuticals
The Simpsons
War
Tipping
Donald Trump
Corn
Black Friday
“is obesity tangible enough?
what about willful ignorance?”
SOURCE: THE AUTODESK RECAP TEAM
WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF CULTURAL IMAGERY FROM AMERICA?

35. Elementary school girls
in beauty pageants
Squirty cheese in a can
Deified high school
football players
New oil and gas drills
in 2015
Credit card debt
Cable news
Corporations-are-people
Unilateral bipartisanship”
Underfunded education
“How have corndogs and creationism
not yet made it onto this list?”
“
McDonald’s
Starbucks
Apple pie
Hamburgers
Guns
NASCAR
Baseball
Advertisements
for pharmaceuticals
The Simpsons
War
Tipping
Donald Trump
Corn
Black Friday
“is obesity tangible enough?
what about willful ignorance?”
SOURCE: THE AUTODESK RECAP TEAM
WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF CULTURAL IMAGERY FROM AMERICA?

36. Elementary school girls
in beauty pageants
Squirty cheese in a can
Deified high school
football players
New oil and gas drills
in 2015
Credit card debt
Cable news
Corporations-are-people
Unilateral bipartisanship”
Underfunded education
“How have corndogs and creationism
not yet made it onto this list?”
“
McDonald’s
Starbucks
Apple pie
Hamburgers
Guns
NASCAR
Baseball
Advertisements
for pharmaceuticals
The Simpsons
War
Tipping
Donald Trump
Corn
Black Friday
“is obesity tangible enough?
what about willful ignorance?”
SOURCE: THE AUTODESK RECAP TEAM
WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF CULTURAL IMAGERY FROM AMERICA?
“
“

37. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/11095439/Chinese-
city-paints-street-lane-for-mobile-phone-users.html
http://gizmodo.com/5390014/internet-speeds-and-costs-around-the-world-
shown-visually
http://www.koikikukan.com/archives/2012/03/08-011111.php
http://www.bbc.com/tamil
TECHNICAL LOGISTICS

38. Avoid stereotypes (+/-),
and remember that
they go both ways.
Does your meaning
carry across?
Don’t take your values/
knowledge as default.
don’t assume or judge
Learn constantly (and
do lots of research!).
Remember your
novice status.
Work with local/
cultural liaisons.
Focus on the same,
not just the different.
do connect and empathize

39. Like all design, intercultural IA is all about people.
Though we may have originated IA,
we have to ensure everyone benefits from it.
Design is for everyone.
ABOVE ALL ELSE...

40. Thank you!
hola@smithaprasadh.com
http://smithaprasadh.com
@holasmitha
http://randomwire.com/why-japanese-web-design-is-
so-different/japan-back-to-the-future/



Global UX. Quesenbery and Szuc. Elsevier 2012.
Handbook of Global User Research. ed. Robert Schumacher.
Elsevier 2010.
Universal Methods of Design. Hanington and Martin. Rockport
2012.
http://www.2016.worldiaday.org
http://www.amanda.com/cms/uploads/media/AMA_
GlobalizationUserInterfaceDesignWeb.pdf
https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/association-for-computing-
machinery/cross-cultural-user-experience-design-
including-asia-iMzdtBufaw?impressionId=56ba46d583ea
c&i_medium=docview&i_campaign=recommendations&i_
source=recommendations
http://sareedreams.com/2009/01/the-washing-machine-that-
ate-my-sari-mistakes-in-cross-cultural-design/
http://www.dtelepathy.com/blog/design/ux-flows-onboarding
http://www.useronboard.com/how-tumblr-onboards-new-users
http://www.useronboard.com/how-if-onboards-new-users/
http://semanticstudios.com/international_information_
architecture/
http://semanticstudios.com/information_architecture_30/
http://www.howtomakesenseofanymess.com
https://medium.com/@aileen.medina/the-evolution-of-
information-architecture-85099ce75774#.9jphdn866
https://medium.com/@erqiudao/invisible-design-
dde3d89d451e#.geezetls
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225114215_
Incorporating_the_Cultural_Dimensions_into_the_Theoretical_
Framework_of_Website_Information_Architecture