UX Masterclass 2023 Zaragoza: Participation Report

The UX Masterclass is an annual international conference organized by the UXalliance ^*, a global grouping of UX agencies based across 32 countries. Mitsue-Links, as the Japanese representative, joined the UXalliance in 2007 and, since then, we have presented at the UX Masterclass several times.

In cooperation with Torresburriel Estudio , this year's UX Masterclass was held in Zaragoza, Spain.

The theme of this year's event was “how leaders can design change in a complex world,” and both myself and Honoka, a colleague and fellow UX researcher, presented at the event. Our talk was titled “How leaders can better grasp future generations: A UX research perspective”.

The definition of leader can be interpreted in many ways. In a broad sense, this would include presidents/prime ministers, corporate executives, as well as popular YouTubers and other SNS influencers. For our presentation, we defined “Leaders” as service/product providers and then discussed how to better grasp the attitudes and values of both new and future generations - such as Z and alpha.

It is standard practice for both service providers and product makers go through the process of understanding and then creating for their target users. However, when targeting new generations with different outlooks and values from those of the “Leader”, the “Leader” often attempts to comprehend the generation by applying a “mold” that has been fostered based on their own experiences. However, frequently, this “mold” fails to capture the ideas and values such cohorts and can lead to incorrect and imperfect insights. To avoid such misunderstandings, we recommended employing UX research methods to capture users “as they are”, rather than seeking to place them into predetermined segments or categories.

As an example of how such “Leaders” can be misled we based examples on the theme of “emoi” – an informal Japanese term used by young people. The word, which has roots in the English-language word “emotional,” has a number of nuanced meanings that include “nostalgic, sorrowful, tasteful, impressive, captivating, and, emotional”. Our presentation received a great response – this was partly due to the interest in the word “emoi”. Furthermore, there were comments from fellow UX researchers who too shared similar notions about using molds to frame generations as well as the risks of “stereotypical” views.

Below is an overview of speakers/presentations from other national representatives:

Participating in this Masterclass was very informative – it allowed me to better grasp the present circumstances and status within various countries as well as providing insights into overseas research approaches.

After the event formally closed, there were ample opportunities for researchers from different countries to speak. This proved a very meaningful opportunity for the exchanging of various opinions, informal advice giving and education, and contributed to achieving breakthrough ideas for better results. Going forward, through the continued exchange of opinions between such researchers, we’d like to further enhance our know-how and understanding of UX activities in various countries. Thank you for reading.