People perceive aesthetically pleasing designs as more user-friendly, even if they are not. This bias is probably based on the same cognitive distortion as the halo effect.

A series of studies show that, for example, Apple products are often perceived by users as more user-friendly and powerful due to their minimalist and high-quality design, even if the technical differences to competing products are small. Often, the subjects could not justify their assessment, but rather based it on an intuitive assessment.

Origin

The Aesthetic Usability Effect was first investigated in a study by Masaaki Kurosu and Kaori Kashimura in 1995, which showed that users found visually more appealing ATMs to be more intuitive, even if they were not objectively easier to use.

  • Kurosu, M., & Kashimura, K. (1995). Apparent Usability vs. Inherent Usability: Experimental Analysis on the Determinants of the Apparent Usability. Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems*.
  • Don Norman, D.A. (2004). Emotional Design: Why We Love (or Hate) Everyday Things.

Application in UX and UI design

The application of the Aesthetic Usability Effect in the design process can increase user engagement and satisfaction. Users tend to rate a visually appealing design more positively and are more willing to tolerate minor usability problems. This effect can lead to well-designed but poorly functioning systems initially appearing more successful than functionally perfect but visually uninspiring designs.

By integrating appealing visual elements such as harmonious color palettes, balanced typography and stimulating style elements, designers can evoke a positive emotional response that improves the user's perception of usability.

However, it is important to strike the right balance, as a design that does not correspond to the aesthetic sensibilities of the target group and is therefore perceived as exaggerated or inappropriate can have the opposite effect and thus impair satisfaction.

Impact on the User Experience

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Further information