Lucy Suchman began her research at Xerox PARC, observing how people interacted with new office technologies. She witnessed the shortcomings of systems that failed to integrate into existing workflows and the negative impact it had on its users.
She challenged the simplistic notions of usability, defining what constitutes a successful interaction between a human and a technology. Her concept of the “frame problem” addressed the limitations of traditional usability evaluations, which focused only on speed and accuracy and failed to account for factors like user satisfaction and learnability.
While traditional design approaches assumed users followed pre-defined plans, Suchman argued their plans evolve based on the situation they are in and the information they receive from the technology. As users interact with the technology, they learn its capabilities and limitations which can lead them to adjust their goals or strategies. By giving the users feedback, the technology itself also has the power to influence the their next steps. She advocated for a user centered approach to designing technology, emphasizing how it should adapt to the complexities of human behavior.