Objective: Help Users Avoid Mistakes and Know How to Correct Them

Description

Users should be able to avoid mistakes and correct them easily if mistakes occur.

It is difficult for many users to complete forms, especially people with cognitive and learning disabilities. A good design makes errors less likely.

Users with cognitive and learning disabilities are more likely to make mistakes. This can include entering information incorrectly or accidently touching the wrong control. Help the user notice form errors and make it easy to correct them. Always let users go back and recover if they accidentally touch a control.

Completing forms and similar tasks is often overwhelming for people with cognitive and learning disabilities. Many users with cognitive and learning disabilities cannot remember numbers, such as zip or post codes or their social security number. Many users even need to check their phone numbers. This makes entering information slow, and they may need to leave their desks or take breaks. Help them by providing a design that reduces mistakes. Give them the time they need without annoying timeouts and data loss.

Design Patterns for this Objective

• Ensure Controls and Content Do Not Move Unexpectedly
• Let Users Go Back
• Notify Users of Fees and Charges at the Start of a Task
• Design Forms to Prevent Mistakes
• Make it Easy to Undo Form Errors
• Use Clear Visible Labels
• Use Clear Step-by-step Instructions
• Accept different input formats
• Avoid Data Loss and “Timeouts”
• Provide Feedback
• Help the user stay safe
• Use Familiar Metrics and Units