The traditional teodice problem goes like this: ”If God is good and almighty, then why is there evil in the world?” That’s a very good question that has been debated by smarter people than me for centuries. Now, I don’t know if I want to blame God for the issue I will discuss here, even though I do think that bad communication is definitely in part responsible for the bad things that go on in this world. Instead I will rewrite the problem statement to be:

“Now that we have all these wonderful media to help us communicate,
how come it is still so hard?”

Let me explain this a bit more. During the last years we have been blessed with several new media through which we can communicate, instantly and easily, with people we know and those we never met. We have email, chat, online communities, forums, newsletters, blogs, skype and cell phones with ability to handle speech, text messages and images, just to mention a few. With all these new media and the seemingly never ending possibilities to communicate, you would think that communication would have improved a lot, right? We should be masters of communication by now.

Are we?

I don’t think so. At least I’m not. And based on all the arguments and issues that arise due to ”failure to communicate”^*, I believe that quality of communication is a topic worthy of a lot more attention.

As an Interaction Designer, communication is one of my biggest interests and concerns. One of my main goals is to improve communication between people and the artifacts we use. With that in mind, when I ask myself if what we have done so far is really as revolutionary as we would like it to be, I am a little disappointed in myself and the industry I’m in. Have we really changed the way we communicate for the better or is it simply the media that has changed? Not that new media is a bad thing as such, but it’s a little like putting lipstick on a pig, isn’t it?

I hope we will take on this challenge during my time in the business. I wish we could come up with ways to use technology to truly revolutionize communication. How can we start to rethink the fundamentals so we can actually change the world to become a better place through the use of technology?

Of course, being an Interaction Designer, I believe the key to this revolution will be to start with the people^**. What are our/their needs and how can we help solve those needs? Technology should be all about us and our needs.

So, let’s begin with you. What’s the problem I can help you solve?

^* Thanks to Cool Hand Luke for that excellent phrase and Guns N’ Roses for spreading it.
^** Or ”The Users” as we like to call them in the technology industry, but really, it’s just a technified term for people like you and me.

- Hanna Rosenblom, Interaction Design