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Progressive Disclosure UI Patterns(PDP)
Interface patterns for gradually revealing agent capabilities, reasoning, and complex information to prevent cognitive overload
In 30 seconds
- What
- Reveals agent reasoning, capabilities, and explanations through expandable sections and detail levels, letting users control information depth.
- When to use
- Complex agent outputs need explanation but full details overwhelm users, or capabilities should be introduced gradually during onboarding.
- Watch out
- Users may miss critical information if they never expand sections, or feel frustrated by excessive clicking to reach needed details.
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Progressive Disclosure UI Patterns: Overview
Interface patterns for gradually revealing agent capabilities, reasoning, and complex information to prevent cognitive overload
- Expandable reasoning trees with step-by-step disclosure
- Collapsible explanation panels with detail levels
- Staged capability introduction during onboarding
- Context-sensitive information revelation
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References
The papers, specifications, and repositories this pattern is based on.
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