Design and Emotion (9/20)
Looking beyond streamlined ideals to design for meaningful encounters.
On Monday we welcomed guest lecturer Jonathan Chapman, Professor & Director of Doctoral Studies at the School of Design, to speak on emotion in design.
All design is interaction design
Design is the practice of introducing people towards a particular experience or state of mind– at some point, someone will be engaging with your work.
It’s not always “positive”
Jonathan posed the argument that design unrealistically restricts the spectrum of human emotions when it only prioritizes efficiency and convenience. Perhaps not all products, services, or experiences should be “frictionless”. By designing with complexity and discomfort, we enable a wider range of emotional responses, and can build rich experiences that provoke reflection and lasting impact.
How many emotions are there? How many colors are in a rainbow?
Like the visible spectrum, emotions are dynamic and blended. We rely on categorization as a helpful reference, but there are infinite variations and combinations that defy the controlled conditions in which these models live.
Why don’t emotions last?
A term to describe this phenomenon is hedonic adaptation: the impact of emotion stabilizes over time (why new things don’t feel novel for long, why emotions fade, why the infatuation stage wears off). Human nature prevents emotional durability.
Anything can elicit an emotional response (Activity)
During this quick activity, students were presented with a series of images and given 60 seconds to discuss their associations and feelings. From just a few examples, we observed that personal associations–driven by varying interpretations and prior experiences–drive vastly different emotional responses.
We also noticed that context shapes our interpretations as well; it’s dangerous to assume that someone will interact with and interpret your designs exactly the way you intended.
Why do our emotional responses differ?
The nature of our response derives from our own personal stories and life experiences. Episodic memory is a collection of past experiences that store up and affect our future perceptions.
Remembering is imagining the past — Kourken Michaelian
This idea draws from Michaelian’s book, Mental Time Travel. The way we imagine the future is similar to the way we imagine the past- your view is a subjective version of events, constructed from prior knowledge and experiences.
Meaningful Associations
Meaning drives emotional response– it’s important to consider what kinds of associations people will have to your work. Jonathan rounded out the class by discussing a few excerpts from his latest book, Meaningful Stuff: Design That Lasts.
Protein Shakes, Eggs, and Treasure
Shakes
UX and experience design is often shallow, missing the point of design’s potential to expand the life experience. When we as practitioners become singularly distracted by seamless interaction, we close off the “range of experiential possibilities”. That is, we forget about the journey and miss opportunities when only aiming for what’s fast and easy.
Eggs
Dark objects permeate every aspect of our lives, and our personal associations greatly dictate our individual outlook on the world.
Treasure
Prized possessions are often cherished because they are imbued with a power– they hold meaningful associations connecting us to people, places, moments, and stories…Often times, these objects remind us about the stark contrast between what something is supposed to make you feel, as opposed to what you actually feel.
Up next…
Come prepared with your human-centered design principles for our speed dating activity!
