Mary McNaughton, Debra Lawton (not shown)
Focus groups of recent Hmong and Somali immigrants provided information about effective design variables for public service brochures. Each immigrant group participated in two sessions. The first session queried subjects on preferences for layout and bilingual text, and appropriate fonts and images. During the second session participants reacted to several variations of a brochure that was designed using findings from the first session. Both Hmong and Somali participants preferred a bilingual layout including both their language and English. Font legibility was important; good contrast between letterforms and background was essential. Images uses should respect cultural expectations. The Hmong participants did not respond favorably to images showing native dress, while images of Somali immigrants must respect cultural aspects of dress.
