2014 IxDA Interaction Awards (Aug 2014)

Deadline for submissions: 31 August 2014

The IxDA Interaction Awards <http://awards.ixda.org/about/> recognise and celebrate examples of excellence in Interaction Design across domains, channels, environments and cultures. entries for the 2015 awards have just opened, and close Aug 31. This year there are two tiers of award, as shortlisted finalists win a registration to attend & show your work at Interaction 15 <http://interaction15.ixda.org/> in San Francisco this coming Feb.

The IxDA have a broad definition of Interaction Design, and these awards are a great way to demonstrate global impact and peer review of practice based outcomes that often don’t fit with traditional academic or design categories – I’d urge you to please consider entering work that fits. The Awards site <http://awards.ixda.org/enter/> has a good overview of how to put an entry together.

Journal of Engineering Design: Special Issue on Interaction and Experience Design (July 2014)

Website: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/cfp/cjencfp.pdf
Deadline for notification of intent to submit: July 2014

Even in the development of the most technologically complex products, systems and  environments, it is now accepted that the role of the user must remain firmly in focus. It is not  enough to fulfil functional requirements such as safety and performance, or to achieve technical  excellence in manufacture. The emergence of user-centred design has been critical in shifting  focus towards human needs in the design and development process. Inclusive design in particular  has set out the importance of universal usability in the design of products, and this fundamental  requirement has been addressed in a previous special issue of JED. Broader user-based issues,  however, require deeper consideration of the emotional reaction of individuals. The delivery of  more personalized usage scenarios encompasses aspects of interaction design, psychology,  culture and human factors to achieve satisfying, engaging and meaningful user experiences.

The aim of this special issue is therefore to address the emotional needs of users and their experiences in using products, processes and systems. What indicators can be monitored to best understand response during product use? Do requirements change through the ageing process  with respect to motivation, learning and dexterity? How can tasks and activities be designed and sequenced to form compelling narratives of use? How can factors such as culture, personality,  experience be considered in interface design? And can the tensions between tailored individual requirements and product universality be resolved in unifying design principles?