Glossary · 1 · Foundations
Evidence-based information design
Also known as: Evidence-based document design
German: evidenzbasiertes Informationsdesign
In technical communication, evidence-based information design is the practice of basing decisions about the content, structure, wording and layout of information on research findings and on tests with representative users, and of stating how strong the evidence behind each decision is, rather than relying on habit, taste or house style alone.
- Applied cognitive psychology
- Foundations
- Evaluation methods
In one sentence
Evidence-based information design bases documentation decisions on research and user testing and states how strong the evidence for each choice is.
Example
Before a new manual template is adopted, a team checks which of its rules rest on research (step numbering, figures next to the text they explain), which on house style (fonts, icons), and tests the template with five service technicians on two maintenance tasks.
Rests on
- Human information processing and Cognitive load theory: the findings that give design rules their reason (why steps are chunked, why words and pictures belong together).
- Heuristics and biases: authors judge their own texts poorly; the curse of knowledge is why testing with readers is needed.
How it applies
- Grades of evidence: A laboratory finding (for example the split-attention effect in multimedia learning) shows a mechanism; a field study shows whether it holds in real use; a usability test of the actual document shows whether this text works for these readers. A design decision is strongest when the three point the same way.
- Machinery documentation: Procedures, warnings placement and figure layout are tested with operators or service staff on the real machine or a realistic mock-up; findings and changes are recorded.
- Software documentation: Search logs, failed queries, support tickets and task-based tests show where readers fail to find or apply information.
- Human-centred design: ISO 9241-210:2019 describes the established framework for interactive systems: understand the context of use, specify user requirements, produce design solutions and evaluate them with users, iteratively. Information for use can follow the same cycle.
Limits
- The label is a working term: it names an attitude and a practice, not a defined method or standard.
- Research evidence on documentation is uneven; many principles rest on learning experiments with students. Where evidence is weak, say so instead of presenting a rule as proven.
- Evidence about comprehension never decides which safety information is required. That follows from the risk assessment and the applicable law; testing can only show how to present it so that readers find and understand it.