HUMAN CENTERED DESIGN | DISCOVERY

Timeline

30 Min

Timeline is an activity used to understand the evolution of a subject over a period of time. It helps researchers map historical and future trends, and discuss the underlying patterns and insights.

USE CASES

Map secondary research data collected by researchers.
Map data with research respondents in the course of a User Interview, Expert Interview or Focus Group Discussion.
Map the evolution of a product, service, system, technology, program, concept, organisation, etc.
Map potential future evolution of a product, service, system, technology, program, concept, organisation, etc.

LIMITATIONS

Use of the Timeline tool depends a lot on the researcher's ability to collect and map information in terms of phases and trends. It is also up to the researcher to ask follow-up questions (5 Whys is a good tool) and get to meaningful learnings from patterns that may be emerging.

UNDERSTANDING THE TOOL

‘Periods’ are the distinct phases of time that the researcher is trying to map. This could be in terms of decades/months/weeks (for example, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s) or even life stages (for example, childhood/teenage/youth). The choice of time frames is flexible and to be decided by the researcher.
‘What?’ is the section in which inputs on objects/events/actions/behaviours/beliefs that fit into a particular period are noted down (for example, music in the 90s was about the Sony Walkman, in the 2000s, it was about the iPod, in 2010s, all music was on smartphones).
‘Where?’ is the section in which the input from the participant is focused on description of location — physical spaces, geographies, sectors, internet. For example, music in the 90s was about the local music store and cafes, in the 2000s, about iTunes and pirated MP3s, and in the 2010s, about streaming platforms like Spotify.
‘Who?’ focuses on the individuals, groups, communities, cultures, entities that are most closely associated with the subject in a particular period. For example, music in the 90s was most influenced by MTV, in the 2000s, by MP3 collections on college LANs, in the 2010s, by recommendations on platforms, and all through, by radio.
Researchers should be prepared to ask follow up questions as participants describe a time period — When? Why? How? Themed questions can be drafted to take conversations further.

STEP BY STEP

Choose a research focus: Start by defining the topic being mapped and relevant period of study (past or future, months/years/decades).
Map details: If you are doing it based on secondary research, organise all the data you have found. If you are doing it in an interview, ask respondents to map their memories, and thoughts under each period.
Follow up questions: Ask follow up questions to get more detail about a particular time period, such as - What did it feel like? Why was it important? How did one come to experience it? Where was one then? Who were some of the early adopters?, etc.
Discuss the trends: Go over the timeline, and fine-tune the sequence of information. Question what it means in terms of trends and insights.

HOW TO FOR FACILITATORS

At the start: Make sure participants understand the goal of the activity and the directions. Refer to facilitation questions if they are feeling stuck.
During the exercise: Help teams define the period of time under study. Help them frame questions for their discussions with the respondents.
At the close: Have participants take you through their questions. Once the research is complete, ask the participants to take you through the details for each time period, and overall insights.

FACILITATORS QUESTION BANK

What is the focus of your exercise? Why will doing a timeline help?
What sort of information and insight are you looking to get by using this tool?
Are you making a timeline based on secondary research, or do you plan to do this as part of an interview or focus group?
Is your timeline only historical, or is there some future-focused element in it?
If it is with users — who are they? Will they have the necessary perspective? If with experts — have you briefed them so that they can prepare? Or if secondary research based — where will you look for this information?

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