Clarity over choices

The time it takes to make a decision increases with the number and complexity of choices

Hick's Law, showing us the power of choice reduction. This law is very important for making intuitive interfaces because it tells us how to deliver choices in a way that makes them simple for users to understand and act on.

For example, consider a signup form that only asks for what’s needed or a product filter that narrows from twenty options to just three or four. That’s Hick’s Law in action, making online browsing smoother.

It can be helpful read about Minimize cognitive load or Progressive disclosure

Another point of view: Tesler's law

In the other hand this is the law of conservation of complexity:

For any system there is a certain amount of complexity which cannot be reduced

Larry Tesler argues that, in most cases, an engineer should spend an extra week reducing the complexity of an application versus making millions of users spend an extra minute using the program because of the extra complexity. However, Bruce Tognazzini proposes that people resist reductions to the amount of complexity in their lives. Thus, when an application is simplified, users begin attempting more complex tasks.

Imagine complex software like Adobe Photoshop or Figma for a professional user.

A conclusion

Imagine: research indicates that users work on the product for hours, making complex decisions with many variables. This guides us to design a product with denser screens that keep more visible information and options for an expert user.

But if the product is used for a few minutes a month, the designed solution should be totally the opposite. I mean fewer options per screen.

We model the circumstances of the world in which users live and how they may change. For example, users are interrupted in the middle of a task: a nurse on a hospital floor or a hairdresser taking a call while working. Choice reduction is appropiate for these contexts of use.