Empathize & Research

Understanding users through observation, interviews, and analysis — the human-centered foundation of the design thinking journey.

Design Thinking — Flow of Development

Click a step to view goals, activities, and outputs.

Empathize — Goals
  • Understand user behaviors, contexts, constraints and motivations.
  • Surface pains, desires, and success criteria in users’ own words.
  • Collect evidence (quotes, artifacts, observations) to ground decisions.
InterviewsContextual inquiryEmpathy mapsPersonas
Primary outputs: Personas, empathy maps, research insights, opportunity areas.

Phase Overview

This stage is about immersing in the user’s world — who they are, what they need, and the environment they inhabit. Replace assumptions with field evidence: listen, observe, and synthesize meaningful insights.

Research Methods

UX Research Overview

Goals
  • Understand real user behavior & challenges
  • Empathize with motivations & emotions
  • Define clear user pain points and needs
Techniques
  • Interviews: one-on-one, open-ended questions
  • Surveys: scale metrics + open feedback
  • Observation: natural settings, shadowing
  • Affinity mapping, Empathy maps, Personas
Outputs
  • User personas & empathy diagrams
  • Key quotes, user stories, “jobs-to-be-done”
  • Problem statements & insight clusters

Watch: Empathize & UX Research

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Guides & Templates