The Viability of User-Centered and Human-Centered Design Practices with Natural User Interfaces (NUIs)

User centered Design (UCD) and Human-centered Design (HCD) are philosophies and methodologies that consider human needs first in the design of products, services, processes, and systems. They also involve users in the design process through observation, interviews, testing, workshops, and as co-designers. UCD and HCD emerged in the mid-century when computers interfaces were difficult to use and the profession of HCI was just emerging. Are UCD and HCD future-proof practices or does rapidly evolving technology require new design philosophies and methodologies? This paper examines how these practices apply to future interfaces, specifically Natural User Interfaces (NUIs). NUIs are interfaces that go beyond the desktop paradigm. NUIs by their definition use a wide variety of modalities and technologies including augmented and virtual reality, robotics, and wearables. They simply allow humans to interact with computer-enabled devices in ways that are more natural for humans. While NUIs are easier for humans to learn and use, they are more complicated and challenging to design because they have more capabilities than current interfaces and are more responsive to humans. They utilize more automatic behaviors. Technologies like robots and medical devices have safety concerns. What design philosophy or methodologies are needed to support good usability design in the future when NUIs will be much more common? Do UCD and HCD suffice?