User Research
The practice of studying real people to understand their needs, behaviors, and pain points so you can build products they actually want to use.
User research is how you replace guessing with knowing. Before you build anything, you need to understand who you are building for, what problem they actually have, and how they currently deal with it. User research gives you those answers through methods like interviews, surveys, observation, and usability testing. It is the difference between building what you think people need and building what they actually need.
There are two main types of user research. Generative research happens before you build and helps you discover problems worth solving. You talk to people, observe their routines, and identify friction points. Evaluative research happens after you have built something and tests whether your solution actually works. You put your product in front of users, watch them use it, and note where they get confused, frustrated, or delighted. Both types are essential for building products people love.
For high school students, user research is the skill that separates real builders from people with ideas. Anyone can have an idea for an app or a service. The students who succeed are the ones who go out and talk to the people they want to help. At Loona, user research starts in Week 1 of the Build program. You will talk to real people, identify a real problem, and use what you learn to shape everything you build. This skill transfers directly to college, careers, and any future project.