๐Ÿค– Synthetic users and 'realistic' research + ๐Ÿง  Applying GenAI to UXR

This week: ResearchOps Ramblings: Synthetic users and 'realistic' research; Using simulation models in UX research; and Your Multi-Use Starter Pack for Applying GenAI to UXR. Check out our Research Lunch Club member interview from ๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ช Germany, our podcast pick on Future-Proofing Your Career, plus the latest job opportunities in research. And finally - join Research Lunch Club, now live in 33+ cities, before we send out our SECOND round of matches tomorrow!

๐ŸŽค Community Highlights

๐Ÿ‘‹ Weโ€™re sending out match groups to members tomorrow! Fancy meeting new researchers? Building a few bridges over lunch? and growing your research network? ๐Ÿ‘‰๏ธ Join us!

๐Ÿš€ Research Lunch Club is matching researchers across 30+ cities worldwide this May - connecting members in trios from fields like AI ethics, cognitive science, ethnography, and UX research. Whether youโ€™re in New York or Sao Paulo or Sydney, thereโ€™s a seat at the table.

Be part of our second round of matches tomorrow! - itโ€™s like networking, but tailored, fun and over lunch!

๐Ÿ”ฌ Research Lunch Club Member Interview

This weekโ€™s interview is from Research Lunch Club - where researchers meet in person for monthly lunches in their city.

๐Ÿ”ฌ Our Meet Our Members series shares the journeys of researchers across disciplines - so you can get to know who you might be sitting down with over lunch!

Research Lunch Club Meet our Members #6

๐Ÿ“ฐ Article Picks

๐Ÿ”— ResearchOps Ramblings: Synthetic users and 'realistic' research: Jessica Lewes expresses concerns about using AI-generated "synthetic users" as a substitute for real user interaction, emphasizing the critical difference between 'realistic' and 'real'. While acknowledging AI's utility for tasks like refining language or practicing interviews (referencing Vincent Koc's work and Kate Darling's perspectives), she highlights ethical considerations, the risk of undermining research validity, and the crucial role of ResearchOps in establishing guardrails, also touching on sustainability concerns related to AI's energy consumption.

๐Ÿ”— Using simulation models in UX research: Talieh Kazemi argues that current methods are often superficial and that simulation modeling offers a robust way to understand complex, emergent user behaviors at scale. She details how models like Agent-Based Modeling (ABM) or System Dynamics can help test hypotheses and predict outcomes where traditional research faces limitations such as participation bias or lack of access to users. Kazemi provides a table mapping research goals to various simulation types (e.g., predicting behavior, understanding app navigation, user influence) to guide UXR professionals.

๐Ÿ”— Your Multi-Use Starter Pack for Applying GenAI to UX: Compiles foundational approaches, tactical tips, and product-building use cases for UX researchers and designers looking to integrate GenAI. The roundup features curated articles on topics such as the ethical considerations of GenAI ("GPT Needs UXR"), practical research applications ("How to Approach Studies on GenAI"), and real-world examples from companies like Headspace and Duolingo, aiming to help professionals harness GenAI effectively.

๐ŸŽ™๏ธ Podcast Pick

๐Ÿ’ผ Job Picks

Are you a hiring manager looking to share research opportunities with a global network of over 2,000 researchers in more than 60 countries? We'd love to hear from you! Just drop us an email โœ‰๏ธ.

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๐Ÿ‘‹ About us

Weโ€™re People of Research & Research Lunch Club - a global hybrid community uniting researchers across the industries, from UX Research to Behavioural Science. We connect, collab and grow. People of Research was created by @faysel.

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