27. People Process Information Better in Bite-Sized Chunks

How People Think

• Understanding how people think is crucial to help you design for them. How does your brain help you make sense of the world.

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• PEOPLE PROCESS INFO BETTER IN BITE-SIZED CHUNKS
• The brain can only process small amount of information at a time.
• APPLYING THE CONCEPT OF PROGRESSIVE DISCLOSURE
• Progressive disclosure means providing only the information people need at the moment.
• COUNTING CLICKS ISN’T WHAT COUNTSProgressive disclosure requires multiple clicks. The number of clicks is not important. People don't notice how much they're clicking if they're on the right path to the information.
• KNOW WHO NEEDS WHAT WHENProgressive disclosure is a great technique, but it assumes that you know what most people want most of the time. Progressive disclosure only works if you know what most people will be looking for at each part of the path.

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• >>TAKEAWAYS <<
• Use progressive disclosure. Show people what they need when they need it. Build in links for them to get more information.
• If you have to make a trade-off on clicks versus thinking, use more clicks and less thinking.
• Before you use progressive disclosure, make sure you’ve done your research and know what most people want and when they want it.