Empathy Map
- 957 installs
- 1.9k repo stars
- Updated June 14, 2026
- owl-listener/designer-skills
empathy-map is a UX research skill that builds a 4-quadrant empathy map from interview transcripts, surveys, or observation notes for developers and designers who need fast, shareable user understanding.
About
empathy-map is an owl-listener/designer-skills agent skill that synthesizes raw user research into a Dave Gray–style four-quadrant empathy map. The quadrants—Says, Thinks, Does, and Feels—externalize what the team knows about a user type from interviews, survey exports, or field notes the agent reads first when provided. Product developers and UX practitioners reach for empathy-map when they need to align engineering and design on user motivations without running a full research report cycle. The deliverable is a concise, team-readable map that informs personas, journeys, and feature prioritization.
- Creates standard 4-quadrant empathy map (Says, Thinks, Does, Feels)
- Explicitly captures Goals and Pain Points alongside the classic quadrants
- Works from interview transcripts, observation notes, or survey data
- Produces a shareable artifact that aligns teams around user understanding
- Follows Dave Gray / XPLANE methodology for collaborative insight synthesis
Empathy Map by the numbers
- 957 all-time installs (skills.sh)
- +45 installs in the week ending Jul 29, 2026 (Skillselion tracking)
- Ranked #424 of 1,888 Design & UI/UX skills by installs in the Skillselion catalog
- Security screen: LOW risk (skills.sh audit)
- Data as of Jul 31, 2026 (Skillselion catalog sync)
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| Installs | 957 |
|---|---|
| repo stars | ★ 1.9k |
| Security audit | 3 / 3 scanners passed |
| Last updated | June 14, 2026 |
| Repository | owl-listener/designer-skills ↗ |
How do you turn user interviews into an empathy map?
Quickly turn raw user interviews, survey results, or observation notes into a clear 4-quadrant empathy map that drives better product decisions.
Who is it for?
Design and product teams with fresh interview or survey data who need a fast shared user snapshot.
Skip if: Quantitative-only datasets with no qualitative signals, or teams that already finalized validated personas.
When should I use this skill?
The user wants an empathy map or needs to synthesize user research into Says, Thinks, Does, Feels quadrants.
What you get
Four-quadrant empathy map (Says, Thinks, Does, Feels) with synthesized user insights.
- 4-quadrant empathy map
- Synthesized user insights
Files
Empathy Map
Build an empathy map to synthesize user research and align the team around user understanding.
Context
You are a senior UX researcher helping a design team build an empathy map for $ARGUMENTS. If the user provides files (interview transcripts, observation notes, survey data), read them first.
Domain Context
- Empathy Maps (Dave Gray, XPLANE): A collaborative tool to externalize what we know about a user type.
- Four quadrants: Says (direct quotes), Thinks (inferred beliefs), Does (observed actions), Feels (emotional states).
- Also capture Goals (what they want to achieve) and Pain Points (barriers and frustrations).
- Best created from actual research data, not assumptions.
Instructions
The user will describe their user type and available research data. Work through these steps:
1. Clarify the user: Confirm who this empathy map is for (persona, segment, or user type). 2. Map each quadrant:
- Says: Direct quotes and statements from research (use actual quotes where available)
- Thinks: Beliefs, concerns, and thoughts inferred from behavior and context
- Does: Observable actions, behaviors, and workarounds
- Feels: Emotional states, anxieties, and motivations
3. Identify goals: What is this user trying to achieve? 4. Identify pain points: What barriers, frustrations, or unmet needs exist? 5. Extract insights: What design implications emerge from this empathy map? 6. Note gaps: What do we still need to learn? 7. Think step by step. Present the empathy map in a clear, visual-friendly format.
Further Reading
- Gamestorming — Dave Gray
- Lean UX — Jeff Gothelf and Josh Seiden
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What quadrants does empathy-map use?
empathy-map follows the Dave Gray XPLANE model with four quadrants: Says (direct quotes), Thinks (beliefs and assumptions), Does (observed actions), and Feels (emotions). Together they externalize team knowledge about a user type.
Can empathy-map use uploaded research files?
empathy-map reads interview transcripts, observation notes, and survey data when the user supplies files. The skill synthesizes those inputs into quadrant entries instead of relying on generic placeholders.
Is Empathy Map safe to install?
skills.sh reports 3 of 3 security scanners passed. Review the Security Audits panel on this page before installing in production.