Many products are designed to fit a model of the average person, often referred to as “reference man”. “Reference man” is, however, not representative for the majority of women, and is even not representing men very well. When the standards that are used to design a product are based on a model that is not representative for the target group, it can happen that the final product is not usable for everyone.
Some products are not excluding users based on decisions on size, weight or other physical elements, but because of cultural norms and believes about gender. The associations of the designer with what is male or female might have influenced the decisions made during the design process. Or, the users might behave differently than expected when introduced to the design because of their expectations, believes, and responsibilities that where not considered by the designer.
There are several ways in which not considering gender and sex in the design process can lead to unintentional exclusion of part of the users. Do you want to avoid this in your own project? This website aims to introduce you to the basics of gender considerate design.