Experience design: embracing transdisciplinarity

The emergence of experience design marks a progression from what design creates to the experiences it facilitates. While this progression activates familiar concepts from formal and interaction-based design disciplines, it also requires a wide range of knowledge, thinking and skills from disciplines outside design. The integrative nature of experience design positions it as a transdisciplinary practice that intertwines design research, thinking and doing. In this article, experience design is discussed in relation to other emerging and traditional design disciplines. Major concepts of experience design are discussed, informed by a review of peer-reviewed and popular content as well as selected, cursory discussions with practicing experience designers. Three core properties of experience design are discussed and examples of these properties in action are detailed.