My 3 Cs: Cognition, Culture, and Creativity
As I continue journeying through the field of UX, the more I recognize that no two UX trails are the same! My journey to becoming Associate Director of UX Research at Verizon Connect was certainly not cut-and-dry. Here is a little more about the work I did prior to joining the Verizon Connect team:
Completed by MA in clinical counseling with a focus on cognitive-behavioral therapy techniques at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology
Got my PhD in cognitive psychology and behavioral neuroscience at University of Texas at Arlington
Managed iPerform Center for Assistive Technologies to Enhance Human Performnce, which is an Industry-University Cooperative Resource Center partnership between UT Arlington and many industry partners
I like to share this context about my UX journey because they showcase the pillars of my professional practice, which are: Cognition, Culture, and Creativity.
Cognition
I have always been curious about how we think! While working in cognitive-behavioral therapy, I learned how to help others become aware of how their thought processes influence their behaviors and feelings. I saw first-hand how we use heuristics to make sense of the world. After working in this field, I became interested in studying cognitive processes and learning how to shape/enhance experiences by tweaking how we encode and navigate through information.
Culture
To understand how we think, we need to understand context! This is key to taking a user-centric approach. My ethnic cultural background constantly reminds me to use multicultural perspectives when developing projects for different populations. My academic culture has informed my research methodologies, tools, and interpretations. My generational culture has allowed me to compare and contrast how we respond to different messages, technologies, brands, and lifestyles. My experience in thinking about cultures have helped me take this same approach to the different cultures of Verizon Connect’s customers — businesses that work in various verticals (e.g., construction, transportation) that have different teams (e.g., fleet management, drivers, technicians), that also have cultures all their own (e.g., people’s perceptions about privacy while on the road)! Identifying, placing importance on, learning about, and adapting to users' cultures is an important strength that allows UX researchers to make impactful, measurable changes in the world.
Creativity
We need to do good work, but we also need to share that work! I get great inspiration and joy from communicating in fun and creative ways. I have 7 years of teaching experience and have been recognized for my work with students. This has allowed me to develop fantastic writing, presentation, and speaking skills. I appreciate the importance of being able to condense complicated material into clear and entertaining explanations, and I apply that particular skill daily. I also employ various methods to share information, from using traditional Office and G Suite tools to generate reports, to YouTube demonstrations to help students, to using Pinterest boards for creating user personas. Being creative not only opens UX researchers up to others but also to new possibilities!