Reducing cognitive load and supporting memory in visual design for HCI

In the field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI) we have a broad range of ways to understand how our memory and cognitive load is affected by interactions in the world. The research described here aims to distil the complexity of activity theory, embodied interaction, distributed cognition and human factors engineering into a HCI framework for understanding and developing visual designs in HCI (a design methodology). To assist this process, interviews were conducted with visual designers from human-computer interaction, marketing, art and design. The designers were asked about their design process and how they handle memory and cognitive load. The results revealed a consistent effort towards understanding a target audience, the effect of the situation of a design artefact and the effect of cultural experience and expectations on design. These results inform a simpler, generalist approach which targets the heart of making effective and inspiring design artefacts for HCI.