Often connected to the unexplained or mysterious, intuition gets a bad rap. Yet intuition is at the heart of creativity, and significant advances in our understanding of the physical world are borne of intuitive leaps. While some hail its power, others advocate that what’s needed is more analysis — not intuition! What does this mean for us? What is intuition and why is it so divisive? And does it have a role in design?

1. two brains, one head
Analysis and Intuition
in Design Practice
Maria Cordell
Design Director
Adaptive Path
maria@adaptivepath.com
@mcordell
#twobrains
#twobrains

2. #twobrains

3. #twobrains

4. “[intuition] is
not the only
ingredient in
design, but
possibly the
most important.
“Most processes Schools tend to
leave out the discount
stuff no one intuition as an
wants to talk ingredient of
about: your working
magic, intuition process because
and leaps of they can't
faith.” quantify it.”
Michael Bierut David Carson
photo source: @michaelbierut photo source: info@marceckardt.de
#twobrains

5. WTF intuition?
#twobrains

7. predictable!
reliable!
proven!
more
analysis!
rational!
systematic!
scientific!
logical!
#twobrains

9. disruptive!
forward
thinking! innovative!
more
intuition!
inventive! inspired!
unsystematic!
insightful!
#twobrains

10. predictable!
disruptive!
reliable! forward
thinking! innovative!
proven!
more more
analysis! intuition!
rational! inventive! inspired!
systematic!
scientific! unsystematic!
logical! insightful!
#twobrains

12. analysis intuition
#twobrains

13. analysis + intuition
#twobrains

14. “We must use both types of thinking, be
able to turn off the rational brain at times,
and revel in the chaos. At other times, we
must tune out the chaos and think
rationally.
The responsive, creative designer must be
an ambidextrous thinker. Such a person,
capable of dealing effectively with both
intuition and logic, is centered and able to
think holistically and integratively.”
John Motloch
#twobrains

15. analysis intuition
#twobrains

16. We know analysis...
analysis intuition
#twobrains

17. • 2x2s • flow diagrams • scenarios
• affinity diagram • GOMS analysis • sketching
• analytics / metrics • heuristic analysis • surveys
• backcasting • information architecture • task analysis
• card sorting • journey maps • taxonomies
• competitive analysis • kano analysis • usability studies
• comparative analysis • mental models • use cases
• content audit • metadata schema • validation testing
• content inventory • navigation diagrams • wireframes
• content modeling • pattern libraries
• controlled vocabulary • prototypes analysis
• expert review • requirements
#twobrains

18. What is intuition, really?
analysis intuition
#twobrains

19. Towards a Definition
“a way of knowing and “to some, a sudden flash of
deciding that is distinct insight, or even the
from and complements spiritual experience of
logical analysis” discovering a hidden truth”
intuition
Daniel Simons & Christopher Chabris
#twobrains

20. 2 types of
Intuition
#twobrains

21. Intuition as
# 1 Tacit
Knowledge
#twobrains

22. Intuition is
non-conscious stuff
the brain
does for us.*
* Mysterious only insofar as the way our brains work is mysterious.
#twobrains

23. It’s rapid understanding
shown by individuals,
usually experts,
when they face problems
#twobrains

24. • Intuition grows out of experience
• The power of intuition lets us size up
a situation quickly
• Intuition depends on the use of
experience to recognize key patterns
that indicate the dynamics of the
situation
Sources of Power: How People Make Decisions
Gary Klein
#twobrains

25. #twobrains

26. Patterns!
#twobrains

27. Intuition is a storehouse of
patterns and knowledge
#twobrains

28. Intuition as
2
# Insight
#twobrains

29. Insight is the realm of
non-linear thinking,
the process that brings forth
“hidden truths”
#twobrains

30. It’s work the subconscious
mind does on our behalf, for
the conscious mind to
work out in detail
Adapted from Advances in Simulation: The Interplay of Inspiration, Intuition, Abstraction, and Experimentation by James R. Wilson
#twobrains

31. • Intuition is a non-rational but verifiable aspect
of scientific creativity
• Absolute postulates transcend experience
• Intuition is an “inspired guess” that leads to
absolute postulates or hypotheses
• It’s how Albert Einstein discovered that
gravity is geometry—the central conclusion of
the theory of general relativity
The Cosmic Code: Quantum Physics as the Language of Nature
Heinz Pagels
#twobrains

32. “For the creation of a
theory, the mere
collection of recorded
phenomena never suffices
—there must always be
added a free invention of
the human mind that
attacks at the heart of
the matter.”
Albert Einstein
in The Cosmic Code
#twobrains

33. data
facts and
data insights
understanding
data
inspection synthesis,
& analysis intuitive leaps,
abduction
Adapted from Exposing the Magic of Design by Jon Kolko
#twobrains

34. # 1 Tacit Knowledge
# 2 Insight
#twobrains

35. intuitive
machine
#twobrains

36. analysis expertise
domain
research
knowledge
design practice
concrete
principles
intuition
abstract
empathy improvisation
curiosity reflection
imagination common
sense
creativity playfulness
#twobrains

37. reports / prior research
stakeholder & user interviews
• understanding
• connections
intuitive • insights
machine • new ideas
inspection reflection
trends & analytics & analysis & synthesis
#twobrains

38. analysis intuition
activity
time
Project Project
Start End
#twobrains

39. analysis intuition
#twobrains

40. • methodical
• logical
• controlled • descriptive
analysis •
•
direct; explicit
conscious
•
•
logical path from situation to outcome
directly traceable
• “scientific” • deductive and inductive
• skill-based
• internalized • responsive
• expert pattern matching of situation to
intuition indirect; implicit
•
• subconscious
tacit response
• pattern oriented knowledge • linear; continuous
• multi-faceted
• reflective
• expert synthesis of conditions & data
indirectly traceable
insight •
• inferred connections
• nonlinear; discontinuous
• abductive
#twobrains

41. analysis intuition
#twobrains

42. analysis intuition
UX practice
empathy happens
here
#twobrains

43. thanks!
Maria Cordell
Design Director
Adaptive Path
maria@adaptivepath.com
@mcordell
#twobrains
#twobrains