How we think and react has a direct impact on experience design, but often designers don’t understand the “whys” behind their best practices, leaving them at risk for misusing or underutilizing those designs. Similarly, psychologists/neuroscientists don’t understand the design decisions that their science is informing and how they might be leveraged further. This book explores how neuroscience and cognitive psychology inform experience design, within the modern context of research and technological advances.

With a conversational and playful tone, this book begins by grounding you in research and AI. That foundation then allows you to expand your repertoire through chapters on design-relevant cognitive phenomena such as memory, learning, and perception. By delving into how our brains handle these processes and how our designs can effectively (or ineffectively) leverage them, the book follows a journey that weaves academic learning with practical, real-world applications and examples.

With the widespread availability of generative AI tools, understanding the intersection of human cognition and design and how that knowledge can be used to build a bridge between the brain and the software has become even more critical. By understanding the brain and human behavior more completely, designers will be able to effectively use AI as an accelerator for tactical projects and provide the context that is unique to the human ability to understand the “why.”

Dr. Jerome L. Rekart is a Professor in the Department of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the Berklee College of Music and founder and principal of a research consultancy that helps established organizations and startups understand their users better. He is the author of the book The Cognitive Classroom, as well as articles examining topics ranging from employer thoughts on AI in the workplace to the impact of skills-based training for retail workers and the molecular basis of learning and memory.

Dr. Rebecca Baker started her career as a research assistant at the Space Vacuum Epitaxy Center at the University of Houston before moving into software design. She authored the book Agile UX Storytelling: A Zombie Software Case study, holds a patent for Information Encapsulation, and has spoken at a ridiculous number of conferences. A UX Jedi, , 30-year veteran of the software design space, and dungeon master, Dr. Baker’s publications and talks span topics from technical writing to remote usability testing.