The Design of Everyday Things

The Design of Everyday Things
	First edition (original title)
Author	Donald Norman
Original title	The Psychology of Everyday Things
Language	English
Genre	Design, Psychology, Business
Publisher	Basic Books
Publication date	1988
Publication place	United States
ISBN	978-0-465-06710-7
Dewey Decimal	620.8'2—dc20

The Design of Everyday Things is a best-selling^[1] book by cognitive scientist and usability engineer Donald Norman. Originally published in 1988 with the title The Psychology of Everyday Things, it is often referred to by the initialisms POET and DOET. A new preface was added in 2002 and a revised and expanded edition was published in 2013.^[2]

The book's premise is that design serves as the communication between object and user, and discusses how to optimize that conduit of communication in order to make the experience of using the object pleasurable. It argues that although people are often keen to blame themselves when objects appear to malfunction, it is not the fault of the user but rather the lack of intuitive guidance that should be present in the design.

Norman uses case studies to describe the psychology behind what he deems good and bad design, and proposes design principles. The book spans several disciplines including behavioral psychology, ergonomics, and design practice.

^ Durham, Tony (November 6, 1998). "Science of the appliance". Times Higher Education. London.
^ Norman, Donald A. (2013). The design of everyday things (Revised and expanded editions ed.). Cambridge, MA London: The MIT Press. ISBN 978-0-262-52567-1.

[Durham-1] Durham, Tony (November 6, 1998). "Science of the appliance". Times Higher Education. London.

[2] Norman, Donald A. (2013). The design of everyday things (Revised and expanded editions ed.). Cambridge, MA London: The MIT Press. ISBN 978-0-262-52567-1.

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