Interaction relabelling and extreme characters

Aesthetics and interaction are interwoven concepts, rather than separate entities. An aesthetics of interaction must consider richness in appearance, actions, and role. Moving beyond a narrow focus on usability in this way requires new methods for understanding design possibilities. Here we describe two: interaction relabelling, in which possible interactions with a known mechanical device are mapped to the functions of an electronic device to be designed; and extreme characters, in which fictional users with exaggerated emotional attitudes are taken as the basis of design to highlight cultural issues. These methods may help designers in considering physical interactions with products on the one hand, and the sociocultural role their products will take on the other.