Altruism in Design: Conveying Designers’ Thoughtfulness to Users Through Artifacts

The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened awareness of the importance of altruistic behavior towards others, making it a timely topic in the field of Human–Computer Interaction (HCI). Altruism, a fundamental trait that distinguishes humans from other animals, can be incorporated into design through two approaches: designing artifacts that encourage users to act altruistically and designing artifacts from an altruistic viewpoint. While the former approach has been the focus of most studies, this paper explores the possibility of “altruistic design” and identifies three factors that hinder it: the distance between the designer and user, contextual dependence of artifact use, and transparency of well-designed artifacts. To address these factors and effectively convey the designer’s altruistic wish to the user, three perspectives are proposed. This study provides valuable insights into the altruistic relationship between designers and users and highlights the potential for incorporating altruism in HCI design, which can contribute to a society where people help each other with kindness.