All language subtitles for 23 - The importance of equity-focused design.en

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 designed 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 needs 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-nonconforming, nonbinary, 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 nonconforming means
having a gender identity that

doesn't conform to
a society's gender norms.

And nonbinary 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-nonconforming or

nonbinary 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 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.