To create better products, designers and researchers must observe and ask questions to uncover the underlying reasons for human error.
DON’T BLAME YOURSELF, BLAME THE DESIGN
Psychology professor James Reason and user-centred design pioneer Don Norman categorise human errors as mistakes and slips, distinguished by differences in intention.
Mistakes happen when all actions towards a goal are taken correctly, but still lead to errors due to an inadequate plan.
For example, you want to arrive early for dinner so you take a cab to get there faster. You get ready, order the ride, leave the house, get in the car – and end up at dinner extra late because you haven’t considered rush hour. All steps were correctly performed, but the intentional choice of transport wasn’t adequate for the time of day.
In case of payments gone wrong, we’re mostly talking about slips. Unlike mistakes, slips happen when the plan is adequate, but the actions towards it are not executed properly, and hence lead to error. Slips are unintentional, and often happen to those well-versed in what they’re doing.
Slips can be either memory-based, like turning on the gas but forgetting to turn it off after cooking. Or action-based, like reaching for your phone to respond to an email but ending up on Instagram instead. Correct plans, but spoiled unintentionally by actions performed poorly.