So we've started discussing designing for accessibility, but as I've said, there's another important factor to being inclusive. Equity-focused design. In this video, we'll discuss equity-focused design specifically as it affects race and gender.
But keep in mind that this conversation extends beyond just race and gender to things like ability, age, and socioeconomic status. Let's explore how this applies to the field of UX. Equity-focused design means thinking through all the aspects of a design product and making sure the product is both accessible and fair to all genders, races, and abilities.
Plus, the designs need to specifically consider underrepresented and excluded groups. Job applications and census forms are one area where gender and race need specific attention, because they usually involve collecting sensitive data from users. You might have already heard about the importance of having gender-neutral pronouns on these kinds of forms, but that's actually just a starting point.
When designing these forms, you should also consider whether a certain question even needs to be included in the first place. Ask yourself why you're collecting this information and whether or not you really need it. For example, a job application probably doesn't need to include a question about gender identity.
If a question does need to be on the form, like in a census that's collecting population data, carefully consider the wording and make sure it doesn't have a bias toward what's considered the culturally accepted norm. For example... Imagine you have a form that asks respondents to select their gender.
One form gives three choices, male, female, and other. The second form offers a wide range of choices, male, female, gender non-conforming, non-binary, and a blank field to allow for a written answer. The second form is much more likely to make everyone feel included. and it will also probably do a better job at gathering accurate data.
Gender non-conforming means having a gender identity that doesn't conform to a society's gender norms. And non-binary means having a gender identity that's neither entirely male or entirely female. Another example of how equity affects gender is with public restrooms.
If a business offers a men's room and a women's room, each with the same number of stalls, that would be an example of equality. However, that's not an equitable design. For one, people identifying as female often need more time, which means the bathrooms are more crowded. Plus, people who identify as gender non-conforming or non-binary are not included at all.
Restrooms that are gender neutral, however, are an example of a physical space that's designed to treat everyone equitably. Everyone, no matter their gender identity, has the same opportunity to use each bathroom. Let's review a few ways this has played out in the tech industry. When voice assistants were first introduced at Google, they were trained primarily with male, native English-speaking voices. As a result, The voice assistants could easily understand and respond to male voices, but they had a hard time understanding female voices because of the higher pitch and voices of people with strong accents.
When the product launched, users were extremely frustrated when the assistant could not understand them. This example highlights how testing with a diverse set of users can truly improve a product. Another important aspect of the voice assistant designing for equity is using inclusive images.
Imagine you're designing an app and you need to create an illustration to use as a mock profile photo when a user hasn't added their own profile photo to their account yet. What does that illustration look like? As a designer, would you automatically create a picture that looks like you or would you be more inclusive in your representation? Representing diverse people through icons, illustrations, and photographs requires viewing everything we design through a critical lens. Avatars, like those used in account profiles, should also consider age, race, and gender, among other things.
Sometimes, designers consciously include an avatar that specifically challenges the mainstream image of a user for the product to be more inclusive and equitable. Inclusive and equity-focused design are principles with endless implications, and this video is just a starting point for you to build from. As we continue through the program and start discussing user research, we'll explore biases and other factors that impact equity-focused design.
Coming up, we'll consider another group of users to design for. The next billion users.