The Role of Neuroaesthetics in Product Design: An Introduction
A series about the fascinating intersection of neuroscience and aesthetics, exploring how neuroaesthetics shapes our design preferences
Today, I’m stepping into the intriguing world of neuroaesthetics and examining its potential in product design. This subject has recently sparked my curiosity, leading me to delve into academic research and studies to gain a better understanding of this fascinating topic.
So why neuroaesthetics? As a product designer, my passion lies in crafting experiences that genuinely resonate with users. I’m convinced that by understanding neuroaesthetics, the neurological basis of aesthetic appreciation, we can create more impactful and engaging designs.
To break it down, neuroaesthetics is the intersection of neuroscience and aesthetics. Its goal is to unravel why we perceive certain designs as more beautiful or engaging than others. It introduces a fresh perspective to design assessment, focusing on our brain’s innate responses to visual stimuli.
Although I have a solid grounding in product design, my familiarity with neuroaesthetics is at its earliest stage. This, however, only amplifies my enthusiasm for exploring this new territory.
Throughout my career, I’ve come to realize that successful design is more than just aesthetics. It’s about creating a deep emotional connection with people. From my viewpoint, neuroaesthetics presents a new lens through which we can enhance our designs, leveraging our understanding of how the brain perceives beauty and attractiveness.
So, join me as I navigate the complex relationship between neuroscience and design, enriching our understanding of product design along the way. I am eager to share my learnings, explore theories, and push the boundaries of what we know. In my opinion, that’s what our job is all about.
Understanding Neuroaesthetics
In exploring neuroaesthetics, it’s fascinating to realize how much of our design preferences are influenced by our brains. This relatively young field of study sits at the intersection of aesthetics and neuroscience, seeking to understand how we perceive beauty and interpret it through our neural processes.
The perception of beauty isn’t just subjective. It turns out there are universal principles that our brains follow when assessing aesthetic experiences. What’s fascinating is that these principles aren’t just based on cultural or societal influences. Rather, they seem to be hardwired into our brains, linking our neurological makeup and our design preferences. For example, neurobiologist Semir Zeki in his research paper “Art and the Brain” (Journal of Consciousness Studies, 1999), and neuroscientists Vilayanur S. Ramachandran and William Hirstein in their work “The Science of Art: A Neurological Theory of Aesthetic Experience” (Journal of Consciousness Studies, 1999), have identified certain laws or principles that seem to guide our aesthetic preferences, such as the preference for curvilinear shapes or for visual contrast and balance.
Let’s be clear though, I’m just getting started on my journey into neuroaesthetics. Even so, the patterns emerging from my early readings are too intriguing to ignore. It’s incredibly interesting to find connections with my daily work in product design while digging into scientific papers.
From the outside, it might seem like we’re diving deep into neuroscience, away from the world of product design. But in reality, we’re only going deeper into our understanding of users. After all, our aim as product designers is to create experiences that resonate with users, and what better way to achieve that than by understanding how their brains interpret and appreciate beauty?
Keep in mind that this is an exploration rather than a prescriptive guide. It’s not about applying neuroscience to every design decision. Instead, it’s about expanding our toolkit and learning to see our designs through a new lens: the brain. As product designers, our job is to create experiences that deeply resonate with our users. What if we could enhance these experiences by leveraging our understanding of neuroaesthetics?
Neuroaesthetics and Perception
Visual perception is at the core of the world of neuroaesthetics. It’s through our vision that we often perceive and evaluate the aesthetic quality of a design. Our brains are finely tuned to process visual information, and certain visual cues can profoundly influence our perception of beauty.
Neuroaesthetics and colour
Neuroaesthetics offers an intriguing lens through which we can look at elements of design we are already familiar with — such as color. As seasoned designers, we are well-versed in the emotional and psychological connotations of different colors — the tranquillity associated with blue, the energy signified by red, the freshness of green. We also acknowledge that these associations can vary widely across different cultures and contexts.
Yet, neuroaesthetics adds another layer to our understanding, suggesting that there may be inherent neural processes that underpin some of our reactions to color. This is particularly interesting when it comes to colors that seem to evoke similar reactions across cultures.
An interesting research, offers some insights into this phenomenon. A study led by Palmer and Schloss entitled “An Ecological Valence Theory of Human Color Preference”, explains that our color preferences might be tied to the positive and negative experiences we associate with those colors in our everyday lives.
So, I am interested in how this applies in the realm of UX/UI design. Let’s consider the color blue, which is widely used in numerous digital platforms, from Facebook to LinkedIn. While the soothing, stable and trust connotations of blue are commonly acknowledged, could it be that our neural predispositions also play a part in making blue a preferred color for these platforms? Could it be that across various cultures, our experiences with the color blue — clear skies, calm waters — shape our preference for it?
While I believe we shouldn’t overgeneralize, understanding these neuroaesthetic perspectives could help us to make more informed choices when designing UI elements. It’s not about discarding what we already know about color theory, but rather about deepening our understanding and considering how neuroaesthetics might be at play. The aim is not to use these insights prescriptively but to let them inform our design decisions, and perhaps enable us to create experiences that resonate more profoundly with our users.
Neuroaesthetics and symmetry
Just as with color, the principle of symmetry is a concept that we, as designers, are very familiar with. Symmetry and balance are key in the principles of design, and their impact on visual perception is widely recognized. However, neuroaesthetics offers a fascinating perspective on why symmetry might be so universally appealing.
Symmetrical designs or layouts are frequently seen as more aesthetically pleasing. This inclination is not merely a learned behavior or a cultural construct, but possibly a neurological predisposition. Our brains seem to favor symmetry, a principle confirmed by several studies in the field of neuroaesthetics.
Another very interesting read is “Symmetry perception and affective responses: A combined EEG/EMG study” which provides insights of our positive neurological response to symmetry. It reveals that the perception of symmetrical patterns triggers a distinct positive affective response, indicating our innate preference for balance and symmetry.
So, how does this knowledge translate to our world of UX/UI design? As we strive to create visually pleasing and engaging interfaces, symmetry could actually tap into our users’ innate neurological leanings, thereby enhancing their overall interaction with the product.
The use of symmetry is more than a design preference. It actually taps into our users’ innate neurological leanings, potentially, enhancing their overall interaction with the product.
Consider widely used web designs that utilize a grid layout, offering a sense of balance and order. Or the popularity of symmetrically arranged navigation menus. Our inclination towards these symmetrical designs may be more deeply rooted in our brains than we realize.
Again, this isn’t about adopting a rigidly symmetrical approach to all design decisions. Rather, it’s about recognizing that principles we’ve learned to use as designers may have deeper neurological underpinnings. Appreciating the intersection of design and neuroscience allows us to further understand our users and potentially create designs that more profoundly resonate with them.
Neuroaesthetics and visual balance
Finally, let’s consider the role of balance and visual weight distribution in our design practices. As designers, we understand the importance of these principles in guiding our user interface layouts and determining how a user’s eyes traverse the page. Yet, neuroaesthetics potentially provides us with a deeper understanding of why these design elements hold such sway.
Balance in design is not about static perfection; rather, it involves a dynamic equilibrium, an engaging interaction between design elements that either enhance or disrupt the overall harmony.
Now, when it comes to product design, our choices significantly influence the balance of our layouts and consequently impact how users perceive and engage with the product. But it’s worth considering, could our sense of balance be deeply rooted in our brains, as neuroaesthetics suggest?
This leads us to realize that balance and visual weight distribution aren’t solely about aesthetics. They also involve comprehending the deeper neurological and psychological influences at play, which add an extra layer to our design decisions. The suggestion here isn’t to apply balance rigidly in every design decision. Instead, it’s to understand that many principles we employ daily as designers may carry profound neurological significance.
Let’s take a practical example. When we distribute elements across a user interface, we ensure that no part of the design overwhelms the others, thus creating a harmonious overall aesthetic. This visual equilibrium enhances user interaction, guiding the user’s eyes in a manner that feels natural and intuitive.
Think of it this way: as product designers, we often follow our gut feeling or instinct when deciding on the weight and balance of visual elements. We aim to create a design that ‘feels right’, not just to us but also to our users. But what if this instinct is not just a learned skill or experience? What if it’s deeply rooted in the way our brains work, shaped by our neural wiring?
This is where neuroaesthetics comes into the picture. It suggests that our instinctive choices in design might be influenced by our brains’ built-in appreciation for balance and harmony. If this is true, understanding our design decisions through the lens of neuroaesthetics could help us create designs that connect more deeply with our users on a subconscious, neurological level. In other words, our designs wouldn’t just look good; they would feel innately ‘right’ to the users.
As I continue to explore neuroaesthetics, it becomes evident that these principles can be thoughtfully applied to enhance our design decisions. The goal is to deepen our understanding of the user experience, creating designs that not only look good but also feel intuitively right to the users.
In exploring the world of neuroaesthetics, I’ve started to discover a new layer of understanding our design decisions. From universal preferences for color and symmetry to the intrinsic allure of balance, the concepts I’ve discussed are adding new depth to my design toolkit.
The principles of neuroaesthetics are not about replacing our well-established design practices but instead enriching them, providing new perspectives that allow us to connect more deeply with our users.
In my next article, I’m exploring how understanding aesthetic perception can lead to more engaging and user-friendly products.Make sure to follow me here on Medium!
