Why change products to fit with people when you can change people to fit their products? The Become AverageĀ® product line offers everything you need to become more like the reference person our world is designed around. Now, finally, you can be safe, comfortable, and able too, without being excluded by everyday design.
From inconveniences like not being able to reach the upper shelf at the supermarket, to one of the reasons a car is less safe for you, or being excluded from becoming an air force pilot: being shorter than the "reference man" length, as many women are, can be difficult.
Learn more →Many products are designed around the average male hand size. Think of smartphones or piano keyboards. These products, that are meant to work for a large group of people seem to systematically exclude people with small hands, which are often women.
Learn more →A lower voice is not only helpful to seem more authoritarian, it also makes technology work better for you. Voice recognition software used for voice command systems, artificial intelligence assistants, and dictation software are better at understanding lower voices, because of the way they are programmed.
Learn more →Fathers are often not considered when it comes to design for parents. There are often no changing tables in the menās toilets to change the diaper of a child, for example.
Learn more →The become average product line criticizes how products unintentionally exclude groups of people. Many products are designed to fit a model of the average person, often referred to as āreference manā. āReference manā is, however, not representative for the majority of women, and is even not representing men very well. When the standards that are used to design a product are based on a model that is not representative for the target group, it can happen that the final product is not usable for everyone.
Some products are not excluding users based on decisions on size, weight or other physical elements, but because of cultural norms and believes about gender. The associations of the designer with what is male or female might have influenced the decisions made during the design process. Or, the users might behave differently than expected when introduced to the design because of their expectations, believes, and responsibilities that where not considered by the designer.
There are several ways in which not considering gender and sex in the design process can lead to unintentional exclusion of part of the users. Do you want to avoid this in your own project? This website aims to introduce you to the basics of gender considerate design.