Erik’s anthropology background gives him a prime vantage point for understanding the mental models users have. His love for language, metaphor, and nuance in the context of human experience helps him transform complex systems into responsive and adaptive human-centered designs.
Erik designs better products and experiences by first thoroughly studying user expectations and behavior.
Equally at home in the worlds of theory and praxis, Erik lulls himself to sleep at night with thoughts about cultural-semiotics, information bricolage, theories and implications of the social self, as well as concepts of “social-themeparking.”
Erik earned an M.S. in human-computer interaction from the School of Information at University of Michigan. Working for the Collaboratory for Research on Electronic Work, he mapped the landscape of scientific “collaboratories” and the associated socio-technical implications of tightly coupled, distributed work.
He also holds a B.A. in both cultural anthropology and philosophy with a focus on semiotics. He has conducted field research in diverse locales, such as the Napo River basin in Ecuador, pool halls in Kentucky, and various publishing companies.