Welcome to our blog. We’re thrilled you’re here!
This blog exists because we love to share our passion for research, design, and the pursuit of making medical care safer. Explore our blog to see how we make human factors research both rigorous and enjoyable!
Basics of Human Factors Research
Explore foundational concepts in human factors engineering and user experience research. These posts are perfect for those new to the field or looking to refresh their understanding of core ideas.
- What is Human Factors Engineering?
- Historical Antecedents of UX: The Psychology Department
- The Basics of ROI in Human Factors Engineering
- People don’t make errors. Products fail to prevent errors.
- Validity and Reliability in Human Factors Research
- Research Design: Between-Subjects vs Within-Subjects
- Introducing the PCA Model in Human Factors Engineering
- Cognitive Biases in Human Factors Research
Universal Principles of Design
Discover the key principles that guide effective and user-centered design across industries. These posts delve into timeless design strategies while focusing on applications in the medical device industry.
- Human Factors of Accessible Design: Contrast
- Human Factors Principles: Understanding Fitts’s Law
- Design Principles: Forgiveness
- Signal-to-Noise Ratio in Medical Device Design
- Introduction to Color and Medical Device Design
- Constraining to Afford in Medical Device Design
- Crucial Role of Affordances and Signifiers in Medical Device Design
- Affordances in Medical Device Design
- Human Factors – Accessible Design Tips: POUR
- Human Factors Engineering and Gestalt Design Principles
- Making Text Legible: 4 Tips from User Experience Design
- Interface Design Basics to Aid Visual Search
Applied Human Factors
Discover how human factors play a crucial role in healthcare with specific examples of design principles put into action.
- The Importance of Human Factors in Healthcare
- What Are the Most Important Human Factors in Healthcare?
- Healthcare Human Factors Engineering and Psychology: Six Perspectives
- An Overview of “Better Together”
- How to Design your Injection Device from “Top to Bottom”
- Human Factors of Effective Warning Statements
- Human Factors in History: Designing the STOP Sign
- Making Alarms More Usable
- Making Instruction Manuals Usable – Human Factors and UX
- Human Factors of Hemophilia Self-Infusion
- The Most Powerful User Experience On The Internet
- Limitations of Voice Recognition Technology
How To: Conducting Human Factors Research
These posts break down the nitty-gritty of the research process, from figuring out how many participants you need to selecting the right technology to capture your interviews. Whether you’re setting up your first study or fine-tuning your approach, we’ve got practical tips and tricks to make your study smooth and successful.
- Data Types: How do they work?
- 7 Mistakes that Derail Your Human Factors Validation Study
- Mitigating Moderator Bias in Human Factors Research
- Ethical Treatment of Human Factors Test Participants
- The Sweet Spot in Usability Interviews: How to Get Richer Qualitative Data
- Capturing a Human Factors Usability Study: AV Technology
- Note-Taking Tips in Human Factors Research
- 10 Pro Tips for Collecting High-Quality Interview Data
How To: Writing Usability Research Reports
At Research Collective, one of our main goals is to ensure that our research is actionable and accessible. Explore posts that reveal how we craft usable research reports, where we share tips and techniques for making your findings clear.
- Usable Usability Research Reports: Introduction
- Usable Research Reports: Formative vs. Validation
- Usable Research Reports: Using Task Analysis
- Usable Research Reports: Usability Studies
Statistics and Advanced Research Methods
Explore our posts that demystify key research methods and tools. We break down complex topics and evaluate popular technologies so you can make informed decisions about your data and approach your research with confidence.
- Small n, Big Insight: Sample Sizes for Qualitative Research
- Means and Medians: When To Use Which
- Everything You Need to Know About the NASA-TLX
- Pros and Cons of the System Usability Scale (SUS)
- Getting Started with Biometrics: Galvanic Skin Response
- Top 5 Eye-Tracking Myths
Regulatory Guidance
Stay informed about the latest regulations and standards affecting human factors engineering. At Research Collective, one of our main goals is to simplify regulatory guidance for you. In these posts, we break down complex compliance issues and share best practices to keep your designs both cutting-edge and industry-approved.
- What you need to know about FDA’s draft guidance on URRAs
- Simplifying the 2023 FDA Guidance on Human Factors Engineering Principles for Combination Products
- New FDA Guidance for Medical Device Human Factors
- Human Factors and FDA: Instructions for Use (IFU)
- Five Tips for Human Factors Engineering and FDA
- FDA Medical Device Approval: Why Hire a Human Factors Expert
- 6 Myths About Human Factors Engineering and the FDA
- Demystifying the FDA’s Human Factors Guidance
- FAQs about FDA’s Guidelines for Human Factors and Usability
- Human Factors and the FDA: Buzzwords
- Crash Course on URRAs
Interviews
Gain insights from industry experts and thought leaders through our in-depth interviews. These posts are like having coffee with the experts, giving you the latest buzz on trends, challenges, and game-changing ideas in human factors engineering.
- 1-on-1 Interview: Rahul Rao, P.E., Medical Device Consultant
- Interview: Brooke Castaneda Radford, User Experience Architect
- 1-on-1 Interview: Bryant Foster, Human Factors Expert
- 1-on-1 Interview: Mike Becker, Human Factors Engineer
- 1-on-1 Interviews: 2018 Year in Review
- Meet Tatsuro Kimura and Mami Inoue, UX Consultants
- Interview: Michael Kuzel, Human Factors & Safety Engineering
- 1-on-1 Interview: Meet Dean Barker, User Experience Expert
- Interview: Hanniebey D. Wiyor, PhD, Lieutenant, USPHS
- 1-on-1 Interview: Meet Theo Mandel, UX Consultant
- 1-on-1 Interview: Shannon Halgren, Chief UX Consultant
- Interview: Jon Speer, Founder & VP of QA/RA, Greenlight Guru
- 1-on-1: Interview with Product Design Leader and UX Executive – Pree Kolari
- 1-on-1: Interview with a Human Factors Expert – Sarah Blair
- 1-on-1: Interview with a Human Factors Expert – Gerard Torenvliet
- 1-on-1: Interview with a Human Factors Expert – Dr. Emily Hildebrand
- 1-on-1: Interview with a Human Factors Expert – Randy Sieffert
- 1-on-1 Interview: Russ Branaghan, Human Factors Expert
Professional Development
Unlock your potential with our posts on advancing your career in human factors and UX. From essential reading lists to insider tips for graduate school and landing your first job, we provide the guidance you need to thrive and grow in the field.
- Research Collective’s 2018 Human Factors and UX Reading List
- Six Pro Tips: For Graduate School Success
- Guide for Aspiring UX Pros, Part 1: Getting Your First Job
- Guide for Aspiring UX Pros, Part 2: First Six Months
Research Collective’s Services
Learn a bit about what it is like to work with us and the range of services we offer! Our posts showcase how we blend expertise with creativity to tackle your unique human factors challenges—making research not just insightful, but also enjoyable and engaging.
- Insights from 1,000 Participant Sessions in 2023
- Frequently Asked Questions – Working with Research Collective
- The Conference Reimagined: HFES Virtual Healthcare Symposium
- Remote Human Factors Research During COVID-19
- In-Person Research Methods: Research During COVID-19
For more resources on Medical Device Human Factors please check out our blog and YouTube channel.
