User Experience Research Interest Area
The Digital Government Network (DGN) offers opportunities to engage on select topics. These spaces are for practitioners who want to learn, share, and collaborate. They allow you to connect with peers, exchange resources, and stay informed about relevant discussions and opportunities.
All members are able to join a Google Group for the select topic(s). Government practitioners will also be sent an invitation to join a closed Slack space. All members agree to adhere to our community code of conduct and will receive guidance on our communication norms and the different ways to engage.
User Experience Research Interest Area
Welcome! This interest area is an open and safe space for learning and connecting with others in government for support, inspiration, and ideas for bringing and strengthening user research within government. User experience research refers to the research government teams do to learn about the people they serve through activities such as interviews, diary studies, usability tests, site visits, and more to inform how governments develop, design, and deploy government products and services. This interest area is not open to people working for private companies or on government contracts.
UX interest area members have a:
- Range of job titles: have many different roles and titles and work within a variety of departments and teams
- Range of team structures: some are the only one on teams interested in UX research and others may have several others interested
- Range of experience with UXR: some of us are new to user research, others have some experience, and others have been developing their practice for years
- Range of backgrounds: training and experience from various fields and lots of wisdom and practical know-how they bring to the community
What unites us is a common mission to center people in our work and to support each other along the way. If this sounds like you, we encourage you to join us.
Why should I join?
Some reasons people join:
- To meet and get to know government professionals who get it –the good, the bad, and the ugly of working on government digital transformation – in order to connect and learn from others doing UXR in government
- To share and hear lessons and insights about how to bring UXR practices into a range of government settings, including honest conversations about what has worked well and what hasn’t
- To share and hear ideas for helpful tools, resources, templates, processes, and strategies for every stage of the research process that you can bring into your government setting
- To give and get support, advice, and peer feedback about UXR projects you are currently working on
- To get inspired by sharing and hearing stories about big and small wins and successes that you can draw on and share with your teams
- To make new connections and find thought partners to explore paths for overcoming common challenges and working towards developing sustainable UXR practice in a government context