Meaning of "intuitive"

Meaning of intuitive in the area of User Experience:

When you check the work "intuitive" on the internet, you can find synonyms such as emotional, subconscious or spontaneous. All these words describe something form inside a person. Just like we can´t describe an emotional, subconscious or spontaneous reaction, all these reactions are based on things we already learned from our environment. For the area of interaction design, this means, that orientation and  navigation structures have to be expected. For example, an familiar navigation or orientation structure or a suitable metaphor form the real world  (see also the post "How to deal with a fullness of information?").

Is it possible to break with an intuitive navigation or orientation structure?

According to Stapelkamp (2007, p.144) it is possible to break with a intuitive navigation or orientation structure depending on the aim. If the aim is to confuse, such as in adventure games, it is possible to offer an unexpected navigation or orientation structure.


Stapelkamp, T., 2007. Screen- und Interfacedesign: Gestaltung und Usability für Hard- und Software. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.