Some discussions on mental model

When you step on the brake pedal in the car, it is possible to mentally imagine a lever and wheel friction to slow down. In fact, it includes the hydraulic cylinder, tubing, and squeeze a number of metal plates, such as a series of invisible parts produced a relationship. The "mental anticipation" here is what we call the "mental model", the pedal is the "performance model", and the actual invisible part belongs to the "technical model". We simplified everything in our imagination as we stepped on the brakes.

Technical model
The technical model is located in the technical solution area, which is the way in which the program uses code to implement the details. The technical model is the internal structure and working principle of the product, which often exists in the mind of product design and technical personnel.
Mental model
People follow certain habits or experiences in life, and the most effective way to build them. Psychological models are often built on the basis of fragmentary facts, only a superficial understanding of the ins and outs of the facts, and based on psychology, the formation of the causes of things, mechanisms and the relationship between the views.
Performance model
A model that people train and learn through experience and form to themselves, others, the environment, and the things they come into contact with. The closer the performance model is to the user's mental model, the easier it is for the user to understand and use it. A good performance model can help us predict the effect of action or use rules, otherwise, we can only blindly memorize and do what others say when we operate or use the rules.
In design, the closer the performance model is to the user's mental model, the easier it is for the user to understand and use it. This is how we design our products, what kind of interface provides a cognitive framework that allows users to make a clear vision and achieve his goals and needs?

So which of our jobs can we use as a mental model for reference? The conclusion is that we should measure the user's understanding. The more consistent the design and psychological expectations, the more quickly the user can understand and operate.

Inaccurate wording is difficult to imagine.
The ambiguity of the word makes two different definitions of the same noun, which are not easy to understand. According to the principle of page expression: the expression of information should be clear, clear, direct. Words should be accurate without ambiguity. At the same time, we also have to adopt to the broad masses of users can understand the scope of the wording, rather than uncommon, professional, technical language to let users speculate for half a day.

Open the personal qzone "Custom" (pictured above), we can see "widescreen", "full Screen", "Small nest" three layout layout, literally is not easy to understand. I am the QQ space of the skilled users, although often operating spaces, but often the "wide version" and "Full screen" to confuse, because the psychological expectation is "full" expression should be larger than "wide". Mainly the meaning of words is not good guess, it is similar to "big", "Medium", "small" so clear, direct expression at a glance.
Difficult to understand the expression of the product name

As shown above, click on QQ space, "Personal Center", "http://www.aliyun.com/zixun/aggregation/18547.html" > Information Center, "Rights Management" what is the relationship? As shown above, in fact, "personal center" should be called "Information centre", because although a lot of applications and "I personally" had a connection, but here is not just "personal" content, a lot of friends of the relevant information is also shown here. And the location of the permission settings is not appropriate under the application list, because the "permission settings" is not the "application list" management, should be the same level as the "application List", is the entire space access rights, message permissions, etc. "Management."

Inconsistency in position is impossible to guess.

As shown above two, QQ space application, because the avatar default habit is to jump to each other's space, and in the "friend trading", but in my room here to see friends information. "Buy and sell friends", "Parking", "gift" head to go where also inconsistent. The same space, a moment in my view here, a moment to open other people's space to view, such product design really makes people hard to guess. Users can easily create doubts in this site: click on "nickname" and "Avatar" is to go to other people's space to see the details, or in my own space to see the current application?

As shown above, in the operating system, "desktop" is actually a "C" disk in a certain folder, but in the click "Up", but can reach the "desktop" again, so here "up" the operability and finally reached the "desktop" position, and psychological expectations inconsistent. How did I get to the desktop again from the desktop? So, the top level should be "My Computer" because all of this belongs to my computer.

Let's look at the structure of the QQ Membership page:

Members of the structure, from the product requirements are viewed from the content of the classification as: "Growth System | Privileges and Functions | Member Activities | Exchange Zone | Member community "several content, but from the operational point of view have" QQ Privileged Channel | Life Privilege Channel | Game Privileged channel "content. In fact:

The original navigation design (Figure 1) is not at the same level, visually it will feel a relationship, or affiliation, it is difficult to imagine the actual situation (Figure 2). In this way, users see the performance model, it is difficult to understand the actual structure of its internal, the two are difficult to connect, can not clearly understand their own scene. Therefore, the bad structure will make the operation difficult to guess.

Seven and related colleagues for further discussion and research, we are more inclined to take the channel navigation down, so that the different latitude of the classification method and navigation, at least it seems to be at the same level. Of course two dimensions are not confused together will make the performance clearer, we can be visually differentiated, such as the two content of the presentation of different ways to ensure a certain distance between the two contents, of course, in the "channel" type of classification, we can be subdivided into two-level navigation, and finally come to:

In product design, we should not only pay attention to information structure, but also pay attention to expression, so that the performance model and psychological model approach, as far as possible to ensure that the results within the scope of expectations. Even we can consider starting from the task and offering different designs. When we buy things online, someone pays attention to the scene (holidays, promotions), someone who searches for something purposefully (someone wants to buy an iphone), someone pays attention to "my personal account" (the seller comes in for a collection) and so on. Solve problems with different performance when all kinds of demands are not satisfied. In order to solve the problem that the user understands as far as possible, the designer should visually show the clue between the operation intention and the actual operation, and let the user see the key difference between the information structure and the relation between each other.

Source Address: http://isd.tencent.com/?p=2079