Which of the following is NOT a step in the user-centered design process?

The user-centered design process consists of several key steps that help ensure the final product aligns with user needs and preferences. Among these steps, prototyping is indeed an essential activity that typically follows the design phase, as it involves creating tangible representations of ideas to test and iterate upon. However, when considering the fundamental stages that define the user-centered design process, "Prototype" might not be categorized as a standalone step.

The steps usually include understanding the users and their needs, specifying requirements based on that understanding, and designing solutions to address those requirements. Prototyping, while crucial for refining designs and gathering user feedback, is often viewed as a part of the design and testing phases rather than a distinct step in the overarching process.

Therefore, identifying prototyping as not a separate step accurately reflects its role within the broader user-centered design methodology, where understanding users, specifying needs, and designing solutions are prioritized.