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User error is a commonality within most of the other categories in this chapter. Some errors are more consequential than others. Some errors cause loss of life, which is sometimes the case in medical procedures and diagnoses. Other errors cause large losses of money. Many errors cause inconvenience. Some errors have no consequence at all.

In the other categories within this chapter, we assume error to be induced in part by other factors, such as confusing interfaces. In this section, we focus primarily on error due to carelessness or accidents. Users are human beings, and the fact is that they sometimes just make mistakes.

Many people who are overworked, underpaid, or otherwise not treated well are less motivated to avoid making errors. Other people may be distracted for a variety of reasons such as personal issues, medical conditions, lack of sleep, drug use, or similar issues. Sometimes, even good people can feel apathetic, overwhelmed, or pressured. All of this is to be expected. While you hope carelessness is not the norm, its gravity is more dire in some situations than others. Ideally, culture should help to assist in creating more attentiveness in situations where people have to perform at higher levels. Even in less critical situations, you can try to prevent carelessness as much as possible.

We classify accidents as being different than carelessness because even the best people in the best situations will make an error. For example, many users have experienced accidentally deleting a message instead of forwarding it because they mistakenly clicked on the wrong button on an interface, particularly when they encounter an unexpected lag in cursor speed.

Sometimes there can be multiple supposedly legitimate actions to take, and a person makes an error in determining which action is correct. Everyone has made a legitimate mistake while driving. It is assumed that in accounting, even the most attentive accountant makes a mistake.

Whether it occurs through a legitimate accident or carelessness, you must assume that users will make an error. You need to proactively plan for such errors and have audit procedures, warning systems, redundancies, and so on, to ensure that potential errors are mitigated before a loss can be initiated.

NOTE One of the most common examples of preventing accidental errors is providing a confirmation message that has to be acknowledged prior to the permanent deletion of an email message.