Nodes of Design#91: The Psychology of Design by Irene Au

Irene Au is Design Partner at Khosla Ventures, working with early, mid, and late-stage startup CEOs. She is dedicated to raising the value of design and user research within software companies through better methods, practices, processes, leadership, and talent. Through her mentorship of the next generation of designers, she helps companies build an empathetic understanding of user needs, inspiring and informing product design and experiences.

Irene has unprecedented experience elevating the strategic importance of innovation within technology companies, having built and led the entire User Experience and Design teams at Google, Yahoo!, and Udacity. She began her career as an interaction designer at Netscape Communications, where she worked on the design of the internet's first commercial web browser.  

For ten years, Irene taught yoga at Avalon Yoga Center in Palo Alto, where she also is among the teacher training program faculty. She is a frequent author and speaker on mindfulness practices, design, and creativity. She is an adjunct lecturer at Stanford University and teaches Product Design in the mechanical engineering department. Irene is also a trustee for the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Museum of Design.

Irene authored the definitive O'Reilly book, Design in Venture Capital, and her popular essays can be found on Medium. In addition, she has been featured in Wired magazine, Fast Company magazine, CommArts magazine, and on the cover of Mindful magazine.
Irene graduated magna cum laude from the Honors College at the University of South Carolina in Electrical and Computer Engineering. She received her Master's Degree from the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, focusing on Human-Computer Interaction at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In this episode, Irene Au shared great insights on The Psychology of Design: How Human Behaviour and emotion influence Design Decisions. We started the episode by defining the intersection of psychology and design and what fundamental principles designers should consider when adding human behaviour and emotion to their work. Then Irene shared a few product examples where psychology played a crucial role in shaping the final product. We then discussed how designers could use colour, typography, and other visual elements to evoke specific emotional responses in users and the best practices for doing so effectively. In the end, Irene spoke on how cultural and societal factors influence design decisions and what strategies designers can use to create designs that resonate with diverse audiences.

Irene Au Websitehttps://medium.com/design-your-life

Book Recommendation by Irene Au

The Design of Everyday Things - Don Norman

The Creative Act: A Way of Being - Rick Rubin

Geometry of Design - Kimberly Elam

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