Important Terms in User Experience. In defining the terms, we saw that they are very similar to what was mentioned in the hadith of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, "Whoever among you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand; if he is unable to do so, then with his tongue; if he is unable to do so, then with his heart, and that is the weakest of faith." We see clear guidance from our master the Prophet in dealing with problems.
How do we connect them together? Let's come to the definitions:
1. Pity
Pity means noticing a problem or difficulty and feeling sorry for it but not taking action to solve it; it is just pity.
This is similar to "in your heart," in which the hadith is described as the weakest level of response.
In user experience, pity doesn't make a big difference.
Example: If a designer notices that users are having difficulty using an application but doesn't do anything about it, that's just compassion.
2. Empathy
Empathy is understanding the problem and feeling sad or concerned for the person suffering from it, and trying to talk about it or take small steps to address it.
This is similar to "change by the tongue" as in hadith.
In UX, this means that the designer listens to the user's feedback and makes some adjustments, but these adjustments may not solve the problem entirely.
UX example: The designer listens to the user's complaints and makes small changes to the interface to make it easier, but these changes may be superficial or insufficient.
3. Sympathy
Sympathy is the highest level of responsiveness.
It means not only understanding the problem but also putting yourself in the user's shoes and feeling what they feel.
This is similar to "change by the hand," the most powerful level of action mentioned in hadith.
In UX, empathy is what drives the designer to completely redesign the experience to better meet the users' needs and solve their problems comprehensively.
UX example: The designer conducts deep research, tests the product as users do, and completely redesigns the application to solve all the problems that users face.
- Pity: Just noticing the problem and feeling bad without taking action. This is similar to "change by the heart."
- Empathy: Understanding the problem and trying to make small improvements. This is similar to "change by the tongue."
- Sympathy: Deeply engaging with the problem and solving it from the ground up. This is like "hand-shifting."
As the hadith indicates, "change by hand" is the strongest form of action. In UX, empathy enables designers to deliver better experiences because it drives a deeper understanding of user needs and root causes.
Ultimately, to be successful UX designers, we must aim for work to deliver effective solutions rather than merely offering distant sympathy or pity.
(وما ينطق عن الهوى، إن هو إلا وحي يوحى)
صلي الله عليه وسلم