Why users say one thing and do another: Making sense of contradictions in UX research

Have you ever had to assist a user who made simple mistakes during a basic use case, only to hear them say, “That was easy!” when asked about the task’s difficulty? Welcome to the world of contradictions in UX research.

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While users rarely lie intentionally during interviews, they are prone to behavioural biases, misremembering, and rationalising their actions. That’s why it’s essential not only to interpret these gaps meaningfully, but also to apply interviewing techniques that work with rather than against the underlying psychological mechanisms.

This session is for you, if you are interested in hands-on examples and real-world case studies, exploring cognitive psychology concepts and research practices, and the messy, human side of UX. Because sometimes, the most useful findings come from what users can’t explain.