Engaged: Designing for Behavior Change

by Amy Bucher, Jeff Kreisler (Foreword by)

Overview

Behavior change design creates entrancing—and effective—products and experiences. 

Whether you've studied psychology or are new to the field, you can incorporate behavior change principles into your designs to help people achieve meaningful goals, learn and grow, and connect with one another. Engaged offers practical tips for design professionals to apply the psychology of engagement to their work.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781933820422
Publisher:	Rosenfeld Media
Publication date:	03/03/2020
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Amy Bucher, Ph.D., works as a Vice President of Behavior Change Design at Mad*Pow, a purpose–driven strategic design agency in Boston. Amy crafts engaging and motivating experiences that help people change behaviors that contribute to physical, mental, and financial health and well–being. This involves planning and conducting research and translating insights into strategy and requirements for products and end–to–end experiences spanning digital and real–world components.

Previously, Amy worked on behavior change products in–house at CVS Health, Johnson & Johnson, and HealthMedia, and has prior healthcare industry agency experience working for Big Communica¬tions on an innovation team. Amy received her A.B. from Harvard University, and her M.A. and Ph.D. in organizational psychology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Amy tweets at @amybphd and when she's not spending her writing energy on a book, blogs at amybphd.com.

Editorial Reviews

"Engaged draws from the latest science on behavior change and compelling examples to teach design professionals to create world–class products that make big impacts on users' lives." —Scott Sonenshein, Rice Universityprofessor and bestselling author of Stretch and Joy at Work

"Engaged is a comprehensive playbook that translates behavioral economic theory into practical, actionable, and ethical design techniques." —Jen Cardello, VP, Head of UX Research & Insights, Fidelity Investments

"An incredibly comprehensive and intelligent guidebook for designing products and services that change people's lives." —Nir Eyal, bestselling author of Hooked and Indistractable

"Amy Bucher brings academic theory to life through relevant examples and actionable insights. This book proves to be an essential guide for digital health innovation, moving beyond shiny objects to define what will truly deliver engagement and improved outcomes." —Amy Heymans, co–founder and Chief Experience Officer of Mad*Pow

From the Publisher

★ 2020-05-01
A comprehensive debut book demonstrates the application of behavioral psychology to digital design.

“Behavior change designer” may well become a widely recognized job title thanks to this breakthrough work. Bucher, who describes herself as a psychologist applying her knowledge to the design of behaviorally based digital experiences, has created a volume that is absorbing, timely, and (not surprisingly) impeccably designed. This tightly organized book begins with an authoritative overview of behavior change design and then logically addresses how to “achieve desired outcomes.” The rest of the book focuses not on design elements but design strategy as it relates to users. For example, one chapter discusses how to make choices easier while another covers how to help users overcome obstacles. Later chapters move into broader issues, such as how technology encourages connections and trust, how an organization benefits from behavior change design, and what the future holds for this emerging discipline. One especially strong aspect of the work is the author’s use of numerous examples in the form of full-color screen images accompanied by pertinent captions and detailed descriptions. Every one of these examples is relevant and illustrative of the text. Another valuable addition to the book is a feature at the end of each chapter called “Perspective,” in which the author introduces an expert and includes answers to questions that directly relate to the chapter. The insights of these individuals serve to further illuminate the author’s own writing by providing a different yet supporting viewpoint. Bucher also intersperses intriguing “Notes” and “Tips,” highlighted in color type to differentiate them. For example, in one tip, she provides a solid definition of the term “good decision” while a note reveals the importance of “Accessibility in Design,” or “making your products usable to people with disabilities.” Bucher’s explanations and observations are cogent, incisive, and research-based; they are often in easily readable bulleted form, augmented by the occasional useful chart. By the end of this superb book, readers will get the feeling that no aspect of behavior change design has been neglected.

Destined to become a seminal work on innovative digital design. (color diagrams, illustrations)

Kirkus Reviews