Psychological principles as they relate to user interface and user experience design.
256
votes
22answers
11k views
Why do people clear the screen multiple times when using a calculator?
I've noticed that most people when using a real or a virtual calculator, they hit the Clear button multiple times when clearing the screen (even though hitting it once is enough), so I started ...
55
votes
10answers
3k views
Why are progress bars horizontal?
Question sparked by this discussion.
Why are progress bars almost always presented as horizontal lines that increase from left to right? Is this the best method of indicating progress (and why)? And ...
47
votes
10answers
2k views
How does Gamification change User Behavior?
On Location Based Applications the use of Gamification is essential. As you move along and check in you earn badges and points. Users also find themselves in a leader board, which most certainly ...
41
votes
13answers
12k views
Why don't users want to see adverts relating to products/services they might be interested in?
As we all know, Google's content display network, as well as many other successful setups rely on delivering targeted adverts to users to increase the chances of adverts falling in front of the ...
33
votes
7answers
2k views
Do users trust shortened URLs?
I've got some problems with shortened URLs personally; they're really easy to create and not descriptive, so it's fairly easy to make them link to malware. I'm talking about links like ...
33
votes
5answers
1k views
What research is there suggesting modal dialogs are disruptive?
It seems "Everyone" knows they're highly disruptive for many situations but often times clients don't. Particularly in desktop applications this form of dialog is often misused, often disrupting a ...
31
votes
13answers
8k views
Is it true that “the only 'intuitive' interface is the nipple”?
Everyone knows the famous quote (by Bruce Ediger or Steve Jobs, I'm not sure):
The only "intuitive" interface is the nipple. After that it's all learned.
It's an amusing gem, but is it really ...
30
votes
9answers
1k views
Ratings: 3 stars vs 5 stars. Why 5?
It's the most common interface used to display votes is the “star rating system,” in which a particular number of points (often expressed as stars) is assigned to an item by each reviewer. We find ...
28
votes
11answers
1k views
Implement gamification on Time reporting to minimize late reports?
A company is having trouble getting its employees to report time of their working hours. The time reporting is the source for invoicing the company's customers and it has to be done in time. To deal ...
27
votes
10answers
793 views
How do you make users vote objectively and not from emotions?
I've seen on Youtube many informative videos on massacres and natural disasters where users don't vote objectively. Rather, they vote based on their emotions, which is why these videos always have a ...
25
votes
10answers
1k views
When you hate your design and you're almost finished with it, what do you do?
I started out with a web design template that I loved. I spent a few days finding, cropping, and touching up the perfect images. I tweaked the CSS to better fit my page's style. In short-- I was in ...
25
votes
6answers
365 views
What are your favorite counter-intuitive principles or ideas within UX? [closed]
A quick example:
"Paradox of Choice" - Giving a user more control via options, configuration, and settings is counter-intuitive from a UX standpoint. We expect users will relish their total ...
24
votes
2answers
1k views
What objective qualities make a user interface intuitive?
How is intuitive defined in terms of UI? Are there any studies about what objective and measurable qualities make a user interface intuitive? What design principles, patterns, or approaches are most ...
20
votes
5answers
581 views
Will faster GUI always make one more efficient?
Are there any studies on whether one will actually get more done during a days work if delays went down i. e. from 10 ms to 5 ms for each update. My point is that if we are already working at the ...
19
votes
5answers
434 views
What makes people vote?
What drives people to upvote or downvote content? I'm looking for the je-ne-sais-quoi quality on successful voting systems and I just can't put my finger on. Let's look at three examples:
...
19
votes
2answers
628 views
Why do some apps feel “heavy” while others feel “light”?
I have come up with a new concept and that is that every application or interface has a 'heavyness factor'.
Let me give you an example:
Google chrome feels 'light', it loads fast, doesn't take long ...
18
votes
8answers
551 views
How valuable is studying cognitive psychology for UX?
I am starting my second year in grad school and thinking about what to study. One thing that I know is good to have a grasp of is cognitive psychology. But I would like to get someones perspective.
...
17
votes
8answers
3k views
Which Cognitive Psychology books would you recommend? [closed]
I'd like to start reading about Cognitive Psychology, but don't know where to start really. I'd rather read a book that teaches me something that I could use when working on the web/mobile ...
17
votes
2answers
294 views
Social media sharing: Does simply showing icons stimulate action?
This is tangentially related to the question "Social Media Icons - show all visible, or group under 'share'?".
In my organization, we've generally found that displaying the individual icons for ...
16
votes
5answers
806 views
Why this timed-hover “like button”?
I recently caught "Where Good Ideas Come From" by Stephen Johnson on Alex Hillman's blog, and was intrigued by Alex's unique implementation of a 'like button'.
Behaviour
The element's initial state:
...
16
votes
7answers
2k views
The psychology of everyday shapes
We know a lot about colours and how they affect people, but what do we know about shapes? When choosing icons or logos, how do the shapes in them affect their perception?
Does anyone know of any ...
14
votes
6answers
364 views
Correct terminology for “please the interviewer” bias?
I'm pushing usability testing within my workplace by performing some Steve Krug style usability tests, which have gone down so well that the product owner now wants me to add some marketing questions.
...
14
votes
5answers
527 views
Monitors display more colors than human eye can distinguish
The human eye can differentiate about 10 million colors. A 24-bit display mode can produce about 16 million. Why, then, do operating systems have 32-bit and higher display modes if the apparent ...
14
votes
4answers
399 views
Discovering new features
I work with a web-based platform with lots of data and various tools to view the data, perform analysis. Users are often impressed by one or two features and stick with them. The platform adds new ...
13
votes
6answers
465 views
Why are nested elements scrolled to the opposite direction?
My question is about scrolling conventions, and spatial scroll conventions in general (even here it's only horizontal, but same applies for vertical scrolling).
Looking at the below mockup, why is it ...
13
votes
3answers
1k views
How many visually distinct colors can accurately be associated with a separated legend in a figure?
For charts and graphs it's a relatively common question by programmers to want to procedurally generate an arbitrary number of colors that are visually distinct.
Various research (or educated ...
12
votes
3answers
410 views
What evidence is there that dark patterns are bad for business?
I recently got into a debate with a coworker about dark patterns. He's a numbers guy -- and I made the mistake of bringing up an example of a dark pattern for which I didn't have evidence of any ...
12
votes
4answers
305 views
How to leverage team effects in HCI?
Humans and Computers can act as if they were a team.
Clifford Nass shows in his experiments that even though we would deny it, we treat computers as little humans ("social actors"). In his chapter ...
11
votes
4answers
893 views
Is user centered design only about hygiene factors?
There is one thing that bothers me about UX-design. One of the shortcomings of a user centered design approach, is that it only focuses on existing needs and not on new revolutionary ideas. For ...
11
votes
3answers
629 views
How do you calculate the cognitive memory load requirements of an interface?
If you break an interface down into elements and possible actions, how do you calculate the memory load requirements of an interface? Further, how do you relate the existing familiarity of an element ...
11
votes
3answers
548 views
UX and design for Gamification of Collaborative Learning
What are proven gamification techniques that promote collaboration? I don't mind whether the specific techniques come from educational sites, or pure game sites or some other source. I want to ...
11
votes
3answers
204 views
How do you nudge users to download your native app?
I was reading an ACM research paper recently that considered users' revisitation patterns. The authors found that users tend to revisit native apps far more often than they revisit pages in browsers.
...
10
votes
9answers
482 views
Do users like choice? How much should I give them?
I built a photo slideshow web page as an exercise for myself.
One thing I found myself doing was adding a Settings button. Clicking this reveals a little settings pane that lets a user choose between ...
10
votes
4answers
601 views
Should I use user-generated Badges to reward users?
I am thinking about using badges in a system to reward users. In the scenario I'm thinking of, users would be rewarded for posting content that is appreciated/ranked high by other users.
I am ...
10
votes
5answers
635 views
How do you observe body language and facial expressions in user testing?
When user testing how do you record positive or negative body language? Do you use observed shifts in body language or facial expressions to consciously probe further about what the user thinks or ...
10
votes
4answers
185 views
Name or data on this error alert phenomenon?
This is just a curiosity on my part, but I'm wondering if there's a name or studies for what I'm going to describe.
I've noticed in many UX scenarios, not just computer related, that when there's an ...
10
votes
3answers
2k views
Mental model vs Conceptual model — what's the difference?
I'm reading Apple's Human Interface Guidelines about Mental models and I can't understand what is the difference between Mental and Conceptual models.
I prefer a short answer if possible :)
9
votes
6answers
352 views
Which is more motivating to continue a process until completion: a percentage, or the number of steps?
I'm working on a set of guides to help users learn how to use our app. We want to show which guides are available and some data with each guide indicating how far you've gotten. The idea is that if we ...
9
votes
5answers
500 views
Do touch screens have a harmful psychological effect on people?
The touch screen is a radical change in the control of machines. For centuries, machines were operated by physical buttons. Perhaps the most important aspect of user experience for a physical device ...
9
votes
3answers
318 views
UX Research: Can I improve conversion rates with the use of lifestyle over still life product photography
I work for a large UK-based clothing retailer. After some initial customer testing with our product details page there has been some debate on the following question:
Do customers generally react ...
8
votes
6answers
395 views
Should I style my buttons?
Are there any major advantages / disadvantages in styling ones buttons like Facebook, Twitter and StackExchange - vs. not styling them like Craigslist and 4chan?
8
votes
4answers
208 views
Is it still effective and appropriate to use psychological pricing for IT people?
I need to build pricing plan for service that will be used mainly by developers and designers. I can't decide what price to use, e.g. $20 or $19.
I'm afraid that well-educated and smart people ...
8
votes
4answers
409 views
Resources for learning Gestalt principles
I've seen the Gestalt principles or laws referenced often when it comes to graphic design and even UI and UX.
Is there some definitive guide, book or original research about this subject that I can ...
8
votes
1answer
300 views
What is wrong with putting price timeline in e-commerce sites?
Why don't e-commerce sites, e.g. amazon, include price timeline charts for their products so that users will be persuaded on the discounts?
Does it incur any culprits for usability or even for sales? ...
8
votes
2answers
483 views
How do drunk users act?
What effect does alcohol have on user behaviour? Alcohol is a part of many Western cultures and it's entirely possible that some of our applications will be used by people who have had a drink or two. ...
8
votes
3answers
257 views
Should we call our achievement system something else?
The company I work for has two public sites; one is just our main WWW site and the other is a site dedicated to our members. I'm a developer there and I'm working on an achievement system for our ...
8
votes
3answers
186 views
To lower user's cognitive memory load or not?
Naturally, it sounds like it is only best for our users if our design could reduce user's cognitive workload when performing a task.
However, there are also theories that explain the need for a ...
7
votes
4answers
613 views
How many objects/things can the average person compare at once?
I recall reading that the average person can only effectively compare 7 things at once. Has anyone heard of this and can reference any studies/research done on object comparison?
To give you some ...
7
votes
3answers
202 views
When offering options, at which position in a sentence should be the desirable one?
When I ask the user a question with two options of which I want the user to choose a specific one, should I formulate the sentence so that the desired option it the latter or the other way around?
...
7
votes
4answers
251 views
Where can I read more about how the brain utilizes patterns?
I've been reading some cognitive psychology books and they all talk about the fact that our brains recognize and store things using patterns. Unfortunately, all these books talk only briefly about ...
