7 Recommended Books to Learn User Research
List of UX books recommendations for UX Researchers
There are a lot of articles that give some UX books recommendations, but most of them are about design or user experience overall not specifically about research although those books are also helpful and could be read by Product (UX) Researchers. In this article, I want to share some UX book recommendations that specifically talked about User Research.
P.S. not all of these books have been read by me, for now, I only managed to read some of them, so this recommendation isn’t only my own. I found these books through some other people that give a recommendation to me or I found it through browsing and reading good reviews about them.
Let’s check it out!
“Just Enough Research” by Erika Hall
I can say that this book is an excellent starting point for anyone new to UX Research. As a beginner, this book can help you get started with the basics and provide you with a solid foundation for further learning. Although this book is quite thin (only about 154 pages), it still covers a lot of insights to learn. This book is convenient and easy to follow because it provides a step-by-step guide to conducting research that will help you understand your users and create a solid research study plan until reporting.
“Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights” by Steve Portigal
An interview is one of the most common research methods in UX, and this book is a great resource for beginners who want to learn how to talk to users and gather insights. It provides practical advice on how to conduct interviews, analyze data, and use the insights gained to inform design decisions. The book includes real-world examples and case studies, making it a valuable reference for anyone looking to improve their interviewing skills.
“Observing The User Experience: A Practitioner’s Guide to User Research” by Elizabeth Goodman, Mike Kuniavsky, and Andrea Moed
We often think that we know about our users but actually we’re not. That’s why this book comes in handy. It bridges the gap between what we think we know and the actual user experience. This book presents concepts and techniques to provide an understanding of how people experience products and services, including techniques for understanding people’s needs, desires, and abilities.
“Quantifying The User Experience: Practical Statistics for User Research” by Jeff Sauro and James R. Lewis
If you’re interested in using data to inform your design decisions, this book is a great place to start. It covers a range of quantitative research methods, including surveys, usability testing, and web analytics. It’s a great book for beginners who want to learn how to collect and analyze quantitative data, including how to measure usability and user satisfaction to improve the user experience.
“Mental Models: Aligning Design Strategy with Human Behavior” by Indi Young
As the title said, this book is about mental models. A Mental model itself is an explanation of behaviour, thought process, and the way people do something or interact in the real world. By reading this book you will learn about how to understand users by paying attention to how they behave in the real world that you can use to help designers in creating better design solutions. This is a recommended book to anyone who wants to shape their user-centred design ability because it provides a practical framework to understand those users’ mental models.
“Think Like a UX Researcher: How to Observe Users, Influence Design, and Shape Business Strategy” by David Travis and Philip Hodgson
This book is also a good one for anyone who wants to learn about User Research. This book will help you to discover how to plan and conduct UX Research, analyze data, persuade teams to take action on the results and build a career in UX. It also provides practical advice and topical examples. Thought triggers, exercises and scenarios to test your knowledge of UX Research that can help you to shape your strategic thinking.
“Handbook of Usability Testing: How to Plan, Design, and Conduct Effective Tests” by Jeffrey Rubin and Dana Chisnell
This book is a great intro to Usability Testing. It’s a practical guide to creating effective Usability Testing including a step-by-step approach, common pitfalls to avoid, real-life examples and case histories, and usable templates. You’ll also learn to recognize factors that limit usability, decide where testing should occur, set up a test plan to assess your product’s usability goals, and many more.
These books are highly recommended for beginners because they provide a solid foundation in UX Research and Design Principles. They cover a wide range of topics, from usability to user research methods, and they provide practical guidance and real-world examples that can help you apply what you learn to your own projects.
