Design Should Accommodate Human Behavior

Don Norman emphasizes that effective design must reflect human behavior, not force users to conform to rigid structures. For instance, the catastrophic incident at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant highlighted that the fault lay with a poorly designed system rather than operator error. Norman states, "We have to accept human behavior the way it is, not the way we would wish it to be." This principle underlines the importance of human-centered design, where products and systems are tailored to fit natural human actions and reactions.