Life and Death Design - by Katie Swindler (Paperback)

About the Book

"Stress changes the human brain, enhancing some abilities and degrading others. In some of the most dangerous industries, creators of life-saving products have discovered how to leverage brain science and smart design to harness good instincts while reducing panic and aggression. They use human-centered design to help their users land airplanes, avoid car crashes, resuscitate heart attack victims, and escape burning buildings. Apply their techniques to your work in any field to create clear, intuitive experiences that effectively guide the behavior of your users, no matter their state of mind"--

Book Synopsis

"Katie Swindler does a brilliant job of breaking down our stress response, with vivid stories that demonstrate how the systems we create can help or hinder at critical times."-- Carolyn Chandler, coauthor, A Project Guide to UX Design and Adventures in Experience Design

Emergencies--landing a malfunctioning plane, resuscitating a heart attack victim, or avoiding a head-on car crash--all require split-second decisions that can mean life or death. Fortunately, designers of life-saving products have leveraged research and brain science to help users reduce panic and harness their best instincts.

Life and Death Design brings these techniques to everyday designers who want to help their users think clearly and act safely.

Review Quotes

"A must-read for anyone who designs in service to the real world."
-- Lauren Liss, Assistant Professor, Columbia College Chicago

"Katie Swindler does a brilliant job of breaking down our stress response, with vivid stories that demonstrate how the systems we create can help or hinder at critical times."
-- Carolyn Chandler, coauthor, A Project Guide to UX Design and Adventures in Experience Design

"To gain amazing insight from Swindler's excellent book, you don't need to be someone who designs for people in extremis. You just need to be someone who designs for people under stress, which is, of course, everybody."
-- Jon Bloom, Ph.D., Staff Conversation Designer, Google


"You'll be returning to this one again and again."
-- Melissa Smith, PhD, UX Researcher, YouTube