033Principle

Progressive Disclosure

The art of progressively exposing complications.

Why it matters

Users are less likely to be overwhelmed, if they're progressively (gently) exposed to complications.

It's the psychology equivalent of ' don't run before you can walk' .

The term information horizon refers to what a person can see at any one time.

In a regular game of chess, the information horizon is essentially everything, because you can see all of your opponents pieces at all times.

In design, this concept is used to quantify what features , functionality , complexity and optionality the user has at any one time.

If the information horizon is too broad, then you're likely overwhelming them with choice .

Progressive onboarding is a technique to lower / reduce that.

Feature usage:

• The amount of information (context and understanding) that someone has, will have a huge effect on their usage of a specific feature.

Check whether the experience reflects this: The amount of information (context and understanding) that someone has, will have a huge effect on their usage of a specific feature.
Check whether the experience reflects this: It's the psychology equivalent of ' don't run before you can walk' .
Map each visible element to how it supports or undermines: The art of progressively exposing complications.
Walk the primary task once with time pressure; note where attention drops.
Ask a colleague unfamiliar with the product to paraphrase the screen in one sentence.

Assuming users consciously notice every place where "The art of progressively exposing complications" could apply.
Dense copy and parallel actions that increase mental effort unrelated to the user’s goal.
Ignoring downstream effects on feature usage when shipping this pattern.

The amount of information (context and understanding) that someone has, will have a huge effect on their usage of a specific feature.
It's the psychology equivalent of ' don't run before you can walk' .
Where on this screen would "Progressive Disclosure" show up as friction or misunderstanding?
What would a first-time user misunderstand here in under five seconds?