what-does-it-mean-to-design-while-imagining-the-person-on-the-other-side-of-the-screen Web Design

Web Design

What does it mean to design while imagining the person on the other side of the screen?

About this topic

Designing while imagining the person on the other side of the screen means not merely creating visually beautiful layouts, but standing in the shoes of actual users (who may differ in age, culture, context, and emotional state) and designing with deep imagination of their experiences, emotions, and contexts. This is the core of empathy-based design thinking — a practice of human understanding that transcends technical skill. It is also an attempt to build relationships with others who are physically distant through the medium of the screen.

Conceptual positions
01 Empathy-First Position

The view that design quality is determined by how deeply one can imagine the user's inner world. Human understanding takes priority over technology or trends, always keeping the 'living human' on the other side of the screen in mind.

02 Integration of Function and Beauty

The view that imagination is a means to an end — ultimately providing an 'easy-to-use and beautiful' experience. Imagination functions as a tool for problem-solving.

03 Relationship-Building Position

The view that imagining the person on the other side is not mere design but an act of 'building relationship'. Design is communication, and imagination is its first step.

Talk entry points

  1. Have you ever felt, while using an app or website recently, that 'the creator imagined me on the other side'?

  2. When you design something yourself (blog, SNS post, presentation materials, etc.), how concretely do you imagine the person on the other side of the screen?

  3. Which do you think is more dangerous in design — 'imagining too much' or 'not imagining enough'?

  4. When imagining someone of a different culture or age, what do you find most difficult?

  5. Do you think imagining 'the person on the other side of the screen' ultimately leads back to imagining oneself?

  6. If you knew there was no one on the other side of the screen, would your design change?

Conceptual tensions
Imagination vsReality
No matter how much one imagines, actual users behave in unexpected ways. How to reconcile the limits of imagination with the diversity of reality.
Empathy vsObjectivity
Over-empathizing clouds design judgment, while being too objective loses the 'human touch'. Where is the balance?
One Person's Imagination vsDiverse Reality
Can one designer's imagination cover all diverse users? Is a collective imagination process necessary?
The Person on the Other Side vsThe Self Here
Is imagining the other ultimately just a projection of oneself? Is pure understanding of the other possible?
Efficiency vsTime for Imagination
In business where speed is demanded, is taking time to carefully imagine 'the person over there' a luxury or a necessity?
Talk note

This theme is not about questioning technical design skills. Rather, it is a quiet space that asks about your sensitivity as a human being: 'How much can you imagine the other?' There are no answers — simply the act of 'trying to imagine' is the beginning of dialogue.

Glossary
Empathy
The capacity to imagine and understand another's emotions and context by standing in their position. In design, it means feeling the user's pain and joy as if they were one's own.
User-Centered Design
An approach that prioritizes users' needs, behaviors, and contexts above all. It is founded on using imagination to concretely depict the user 'on the other side of the screen'.
Imagination
The capacity to mentally recreate situations and emotions of others one has not directly experienced. In design, it functions as the power to vividly depict the lives of users one has never met.
Talk prompts
Ice breaker

What was the last website or app where you felt 'this design is seeing me'? How did you feel at that moment?

Deep dive

If you were to design something you are currently making (or will make) for a complete stranger on the other side of the screen, what is the first question you would want to ask that person?

Bridge

Ask the other person about the design or service they are talking about: 'What kind of person do you think the creator of this design imagined when making it?'

Further questions
  • In AI-generated design, where is the 'subject who imagines' located?
  • What kind of work does a designer who cannot imagine 'the person on the other side' produce?
  • What happens to design when imagination dries up?
  • How does the quality of imagination differ between designs for children and for the elderly?
  • Is it possible to imagine 'the person over there' on highly anonymous parts of the internet?