UX Psychology

UX Psychology Substack explores the intersection of user experience design and psychology. It covers analyzing user data, enhancing user experiences through psychological principles, the impact of automation, cultural considerations in UX, emotional aspects of design, UX research methodologies, adapting UX for diverse populations, addressing cognitive biases, and the integration of AI in UX. It aims to enhance the design process by applying psychological insights.

User Experience Design Psychological Principles Qualitative and Quantitative Research Automation in User Experience Cultural Aspects of UX Emotional Design AI and Machine Learning Cognitive Biases Dark Patterns Inclusive Design Digital Product Design User Research

The hottest Substack posts of UX Psychology

And their main takeaways

Turning NPS into action: how to make the most out of a... dubious metric*

218 implied HN points • 14 Dec 22
💼 Business Metrics User Experience Research Analysis Strategy
  1. NPS (Net Promoter Score) measures customer loyalty based on likelihood of recommendation. Responses are categorized into Promoters, Passives, and Detractors.
  2. To make the most of NPS, ensure it is measured properly by defining target audience, using standardized surveys, analyzing data regularly, and avoiding biases.
  3. Despite NPS limitations, leverage its open-ended question for uncovering user pain points, recruiting research participants, involving all team members, complementing with other metrics, and using it strategically.

Does terminology affect how we perceive and evaluate intelligent systems?

158 implied HN points • 16 Jan 23
🕹 Technology AI Algorithms
  1. Terminology used to describe intelligent systems can impact how people perceive and evaluate them. Different terms like 'AI', 'algorithms', or 'robots' can influence perceptions of complexity, trustworthiness, and human-likeness.
  2. Research shows that the terminology chosen can affect perceptions of fairness and trust in intelligent systems. Terms like 'algorithm' and 'sophisticated statistical model' may lead to better evaluations compared to 'artificial intelligence'.
  3. The terminology selected for discussing intelligent systems can have strategic implications. Companies and product designers can intentionally use terminology to shape perceptions, engage users, and influence attitudes towards products using intelligent systems.

Understanding the Hawthorne Effect in UX Research

138 implied HN points • 06 Feb 23
🕹 Technology UX Research Human behavior User Experience Research Methods
  1. The Hawthorne Effect is when individuals change their behavior because they know they are being observed, impacting various behaviors from dietary habits to research study results.
  2. Possible explanations for the Hawthorne Effect include people conforming to expectations when observed and feeling pressured to perform better.
  3. To mitigate the Hawthorne Effect in UX research, steps like using control groups, minimizing feedback during studies, focusing on cause-and-effect relationships, and creating judgment-free environments can help obtain more accurate data.

Triangulation in UX Research

238 implied HN points • 14 Jun 22
🕹 Technology UX Research Data Analysis Research Methods User Insights
  1. Triangulation in UX research involves using multiple research methods or data sources to study the same phenomenon, enhancing credibility and providing more robust insights.
  2. There are 4 main types of triangulation recognized in research: data triangulation, investigator triangulation, theory triangulation, and methodological triangulation.
  3. Using triangulation in user research can lead to more confidence in data, reveal unexpected findings, and help to understand a problem more clearly, although it may also increase chances of confirmation bias.

Choosing the right UX metrics - Part 2

158 implied HN points • 03 Oct 22
🕹 Technology UX Design Metrics Product Management User Experience Data Analysis
  1. Identifying clear goals is crucial in choosing the right UX metrics, involving team and stakeholders can help define meaningful and actionable metrics.
  2. Mapping goals to signals helps track progress towards goals; gathering user feedback and reviews can be essential signals to measure UX success.
  3. Refining signals into specific metrics is the final step, where data scientists can assist in ensuring metrics are measured accurately; focus on key metrics and avoid adding unnecessary data.
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Breaking into UX Research: what can you do to land your first role?

119 implied HN points • 31 Oct 22
🕹 Technology UX Research Career Advice Networking Skill development Job search
  1. Breaking into UX research can be challenging due to limited junior roles and increasing competition, but there are various pathways to entry.
  2. To prepare for a career in UX research, assess your existing skills, leverage past experience, network actively, and work on side projects.
  3. Consider applying for roles related to user research or product development, even if not directly in UX, to gain relevant industry exposure.

Choosing the right UX metrics - Part 1

119 implied HN points • 20 Sep 22
🕹 Technology UX Design Metrics User Experience Product Analytics
  1. UX metrics are vital for making evidence-based UX decisions instead of relying on opinions and beliefs.
  2. Using a combination of attitudinal and behavioral metrics can provide a comprehensive understanding of user experience.
  3. The HEART framework - Happiness, Engagement, Adoption, Retention, and Task Success - offers a structured way to select and track UX metrics for data-driven decision-making.

A UXer's guide to neurodiversity

158 implied HN points • 13 May 22
🕹 Technology Design Neurodiversity Inclusion Accessibility User Experience
  1. Neurodiversity encompasses a wide range of neurological variations in the human population, emphasizing the positive aspects and uniqueness of different thinking styles and cognitive functions.
  2. When designing for neurodiversity, consider factors like font choice, error prevention, clear copywriting, sensory issues, and consistency in design to create inclusive user experiences.
  3. In the workplace, it's important to foster understanding and flexibility to support neurodiverse individuals, from adjusting hiring practices to creating accommodating work environments and providing education and resources.

From no research to continuous research: a how to guide

138 implied HN points • 03 May 22
🕹 Technology UX Research User Insights UX Design Product Development
  1. Continuous research involves conducting fast-rhythm, open-ended user research sessions without a specific project focus, helping to uncover user pain points and opportunity areas.
  2. Creating a user research panel and semi-automating the process can help enable regular interactions with users, making it easier to schedule and conduct interviews.
  3. Continuous research can bring the 'voice of the user' to the company, but traditional UX research methods are still needed for specific personas or segments. Automating parts of the research process is crucial to establishing a continuous research habit.

Psychological principles in product design — a closer look at Duolingo

198 implied HN points • 05 Oct 21
🕹 Technology UX Psychology Gamification Design User engagement
  1. Small improvements near the end of an experience can significantly impact how people remember the entire event.
  2. Highlighting a unique option among similar choices can make it more memorable and likely to be chosen.
  3. As people make progress towards a goal, they tend to speed up their actions to reach it faster, indicating motivation by the remaining distance to the target.

Why do people hate redesigns?

178 implied HN points • 28 Oct 21
🕹 Technology UX Design Psychology User Research Behavioral Economics Cognitive Bias
  1. Users often hate redesigns due to familiarity bias, where they prefer the familiar even if the change is beneficial, and the endowment effect which makes them value what they already have more.
  2. Psychology plays a significant role in user reactions to redesigns, as habits are hard to change, leading to user dissatisfaction with altered interfaces.
  3. To improve user experience with redesigns, allowing opt-ins for changes can give users control, conducting thorough user research helps address pain-points, and making small, incremental changes can ease user adaptation.

How many participants do you need for a usability study?

79 implied HN points • 02 Aug 22
🕹 Technology UX Research Methodology
  1. The number of participants in a usability study should be chosen based on factors like the impact of the study, complexity of the product, target user groups, and study's purpose. A range of 3-20 participants is generally valid, with 5-10 being a sensible baseline.
  2. Increasing the number of participants in a usability study can improve the reliability of findings. For example, using 10 participants can uncover 95% of the problems on average, while 15 participants can identify 97% of the issues.
  3. Choosing the right methodology and preventing facilitator errors are crucial in usability testing, as poor methodology can lead to invalid study results regardless of participant group size. Quality over quantity is key in ensuring effective usability testing.

A user researcher's guide to secondary research

99 implied HN points • 04 Feb 22
🕹 Technology Research Academic Data Collection
  1. Secondary research involves using existing data to answer research questions rather than gathering new data directly. It helps deepen understanding of the problem space and can save time by guiding primary research.
  2. Conducting secondary research starts by defining the research question, identifying potential sources, evaluating source reliability, conducting the search, and creating a report or summary. This process is crucial for gathering reliable information.
  3. Using academic principles like literature review can enhance the quality of secondary research in UX projects, helping to shape research questions and hypotheses based on existing knowledge.

Hidden vs disabled states

119 implied HN points • 25 Oct 21
🕹 Technology UX Design
  1. When to use disabled states: It's suitable for temporarily unavailable controls like buttons that require user action to enable. Also used to indicate that a feature exists but is inactive.
  2. When to use hidden states: Ideal for controls unauthorized for the user, rarely used functions, or when there's an excess of disabled features. Helps reduce cognitive load and maintain simplicity.
  3. Considerations for disabled vs. hidden states: Key factors include user needs to know and do, feature visibility, and avoiding distractions. Accessibility guidelines and clear visual cues are essential for effective implementation.

The attention span myth

119 implied HN points • 20 Oct 21
🔬 Science Psychology Attention
  1. The myth about the average human attention span being 8 seconds (less than a goldfish) is false. Attention span is task-dependent, influenced by various factors like task demands, motivation, and arousal level.
  2. Motivated reasoning and social validation play a role in the prevalence of attention span myths. People are inclined to believe information that aligns with their existing beliefs.
  3. The snackable content trend, driven by the attention span myth, emphasizes short, easy-to-consume content over quality. Understanding user needs and providing quality experiences are crucial for engaging audiences.

Demand Characteristics in UX Research

79 implied HN points • 11 Apr 22
🕹 Technology UX Research User Behavior Research Methods Psychology Ethics
  1. Participants in research studies often change their natural behavior to match what they think the researcher expects.
  2. Demand characteristics, the Hawthorne effect, and social desirability bias are related but have subtle differences in how they impact participant behavior.
  3. To mitigate the impact of demand characteristics in UX research, strategies like using a double-blind approach, being mindful of participant cues, recruiting diverse participants, and employing methodological triangulation can be effective.

So you want to be a UX researcher?

79 implied HN points • 27 Mar 22
🕹 Technology UX Research Academia Networking Online presence Learning Resources
  1. Before transitioning to UX research, consider if it aligns with your interests and flexibility needs, as it differs from academic research.
  2. Networking with UX professionals, establishing an online presence, and engaging in enterprise activities can help you break into the industry.
  3. Developing transferrable skills, learning more about UX through various resources, and crafting an industry-focused CV are crucial steps for transitioning from academia to UX research.

Evaluating UX in robots

39 implied HN points • 11 Nov 22
🕹 Technology UX Robots
  1. Robots are being increasingly utilized, especially in response to crises like the pandemic, where they help in multiple ways from monitoring patients to making deliveries.
  2. When evaluating social robots for usability, methodologies include using textual descriptions, video demonstrations, live interactions, and the Wizard of Oz method.
  3. Evaluation dimensions in social robot studies cover utilitarian aspects like ease of use, emotional appeal, and trust, with methods like questionnaires, interviews, biometrics, and video analysis.

Gamification in UX Research

99 implied HN points • 13 Oct 21
🕹 Technology UX Research Gamification User Insights
  1. Gamification involves using game elements in non-gaming contexts like education to enhance learning and behavioral change.
  2. In user research, games create a safe environment for participants to express opinions freely and uncover insights that traditional methods may miss.
  3. Design and research games can help improve user engagement, prevent biases, and uncover new insights, but creating effective research games requires expertise and clear rules.

Implicit measures in UX

99 implied HN points • 11 Oct 21
🕹 Technology UX Measurement Research Psychology Marketing
  1. Self-report methods like questionnaires and interviews are commonly used in UX research, but they have limitations due to factors like social desirability bias and limited introspection.
  2. To fully understand user experience, it's important to consider unconscious motives like emotions and implicit attitudes, which can be measured using implicit techniques such as the Implicit Associate Test (IAT).
  3. Implicit measures, like the IAT, provide insights into unconscious processes influencing behavior, and can offer additional valuable information in UX research compared to traditional explicit measures like questionnaires.

Standardized usability questionnaires: which one to use?

79 implied HN points • 16 Dec 21
🕹 Technology Usability User Experience Research Metrics
  1. Standardized usability questionnaires have many advantages like objectivity, reliability, and validity.
  2. There are various post-test standardized usability questionnaires available, such as QUIS, SUMI, PSSUQ, SUS, and SUPR-Q, each with unique features and applications.
  3. Choosing the right questionnaire depends on factors like the nature of the project, stage of research, goals of the study, and budget limitations.

How to optimize button microcopy

79 implied HN points • 04 Nov 21
🕹 Technology UX Design User Experience
  1. Microcopy plays three main roles: motivate a user to take action, help guide the user, provide feedback on the actions taken
  2. Effective button microcopy uses action verbs instead of generic words to clearly describe the user action, matches the button copy with the action, and maintains consistency in writing
  3. Good microcopy should be transparent, avoid jargon, pay attention to capitalization, and be user-centered with testing and understanding user needs

How to design better destructive action modals

79 implied HN points • 01 Nov 21
🪑 Design UI/UX User Interface
  1. Error prevention is crucial in user interface design to enhance usability and prevent user mistakes.
  2. Using confirmation dialogs before destructive actions can help users understand consequences and avoid errors.
  3. Improving destructive action modals involves clear microcopy, visual cues for destructive buttons, and allowing users to undo actions or confirm through text input.

The “doorknob phenomenon” in user interviews

59 implied HN points • 18 Feb 22
🏥 Health & Wellness Psychology Medicine Communication
  1. In user interviews, the 'doorknob phenomenon' describes when interviewees wait till the end to share significant information, similar to patients telling crucial details as they leave the doctor's office.
  2. To prevent the 'doorknob phenomenon', ask participants open-ended questions like 'Anything else?' during the interview to encourage them to share more.
  3. Avoid rushing to fill awkward silences in interviews as intentional silence can prompt interviewees to offer additional valuable insights.

Guiding Choices in UX: The Role and Ethics of Nudging

1 HN point • 01 Mar 24
🕹 Technology UX Design Behavioral Economics Psychology Ethics User Experience
  1. Nudging is a technique based on behavioral economics that gently guides people towards beneficial choices while allowing freedom of choice.
  2. Nudges leverage cognitive biases and mental shortcuts to influence behavior positively and enhance the user experience in various contexts.
  3. Using nudges in UX requires caution to avoid pitfalls like over-reliance on defaults, ethical concerns, undermining trust, and unintended consequences.

Creating personas with secondary data

59 implied HN points • 05 Jan 22
🕹 Technology UX Design User Research
  1. Personas are crucial in design, representing target users based on research. They help focus design efforts, improve team communication, make assumptions explicit, and bring empathy to the process.
  2. Secondary data can be utilized to create personas, saving time and costs. Social media, case studies, and internal research are potential sources.
  3. Creating multiple personas ensures a more accurate representation of the target group. It's essential to limit personas to 3-4 major ones, each representing a segment of the target users.

Card sorting: how many participants do you really need?

39 implied HN points • 07 Jun 22
🕹 Technology UX Research
  1. Card sorting is a popular UX research method where participants group labels according to their own criteria, revealing their knowledge structure and helping create user-friendly information architectures.
  2. There are three main types of card sorting: open, closed, and hybrid, each serving different research goals.
  3. Studies suggest that 15-30 participants are usually enough for card sorting studies to provide reliable results, with 15 participants being sufficient for most projects but 20-30 recommended for larger projects.

Standardized usability questionnaires: post-task measures

59 implied HN points • 23 Dec 21
🕹 Technology Usability Psychometrics User Experience Testing
  1. Post-task questionnaires capture user impressions immediately after a task, offering insights into user experience.
  2. Popular post-task questionnaires include the After-Scenario Questionnaire (ASQ), Subjective Mental Effort Question (SMEQ), and Expectation ratings (ER), each providing valuable usability feedback.
  3. When conducting usability studies, using multiple post-task questionnaires, like ASQ and SEQ, is recommended for a better understanding of user perceptions.

Psychological time and UX

59 implied HN points • 07 Oct 21
🕹 Technology UX Psychology Design User Experience
  1. Psychological time, influenced by factors like anxiety and cultural background, affects how we perceive waiting time.
  2. Changing passive wait time to active engagement can significantly improve user experience in various scenarios.
  3. To enhance user experience, minimizing traditional wait times and engaging users with activities can create a more enjoyable waiting experience.

Welcome to UX Psychology

59 implied HN points • 04 Oct 21
🕹 Technology Psychology Research Cognition
  1. UX Psychology newsletter covers a range of UX topics from the perspective of a UX Researcher/Cognitive Psychologist, including essays on cognition in user experience and practical research guides.
  2. The author is a UX Researcher with a PhD in Cognitive Psychology, sharing their expertise and insights after transitioning from academia to full-time UX work.
  3. Using Substack allows the author to repost previous work from other platforms and share inspiring content without the constraints they faced on Medium.

People don't want to think more than they have to

39 implied HN points • 04 Mar 22
🔬 Science Psychology User Experience Decision-making Human behavior
  1. People prefer to take the path of least resistance and avoid thinking too much, unless necessary.
  2. The principle of least effort influences decision-making and problem-solving by favoring easier, quicker Type 1 thinking over more effortful Type 2 thinking.
  3. In UX design, creating seamless and effortless experiences that align with users' preferences for Type 1 thinking can enhance user satisfaction and engagement.

Heuristic evaluation vs. user testing

39 implied HN points • 20 Jan 22
🕹 Technology UX Design User Experience Software Development Research Studies
  1. Heuristic Evaluation involves experts examining an interface to find good and bad points, following specific industry standards for evaluation.
  2. User Testing is a more effective method since real users perform tasks on the interface, detecting major usability issues and providing valuable insights.
  3. While Heuristic Evaluation is quicker and cheaper, User Testing offers better performance estimates and detects more significant problems that affect user experience.

5-second tests: Measuring first impressions

39 implied HN points • 29 Nov 21
🕹 Technology Design Usability Research User Experience
  1. The 5-second test is a form of usability testing to measure users' first impressions of a design by showing them a fixed interface for a short time.
  2. Aesthetic elements influence users' first impressions, which form quickly within the first few seconds of viewing a design. Designers have a limited time to make a good first impression.
  3. The 5-second test is effective for assessing perceived usability and initial reactions to an interface, but it does not measure actual usability or comprehension of complex information.

Allow people to turn their cameras off, to fight Zoom fatigue

39 implied HN points • 18 Oct 21
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health Remote work Gender differences
  1. Using a camera during virtual meetings can be fatiguing, especially for women and newcomers.
  2. Zoom fatigue can be caused by excessive close-up eye gaze, cognitive load from deliberate nonverbal cues, self-evaluation from staring at oneself, and limited physical mobility.
  3. Allowing people to turn their cameras off in virtual meetings can help fight Zoom fatigue, particularly benefiting women and new employees by reducing the pressure to manage appearances.

Using the SCQA framework in UX Research

19 implied HN points • 11 Mar 22
🕹 Technology UX Research Storytelling Framework Communication
  1. Using storytelling skills can help overcome challenges in presenting UX research insights - simplify and make it narrative.
  2. SCQA framework (Situation, Complication, Question, Answer) structures information for a clear and compelling story.
  3. Applying SCQA in presentations can make messages clearer, urgent, and more interesting, capturing audience attention effectively.

Online Forms: how to communicate format restrictions?

19 implied HN points • 25 Feb 22
🕹 Technology UX Design
  1. Good web form design should aim to prevent user errors during data entry but also help users correct mistakes quickly.
  2. Format restrictions in online forms, like for date of birth or password creation, should be clearly communicated to users to prevent errors and frustration.
  3. Research suggests that explaining format specifications to users in advance is crucial for reducing errors, while using format examples alone may lead to interpretation errors.

The problem with the 10,000-hour rule...

19 implied HN points • 09 Feb 22
🔬 Science Expertise Skill acquisition Performance Meta-analysis
  1. The 10,000-hour rule, popularized by Malcolm Gladwell, suggesting practice alone leads to expertise has been debunked by recent studies showing talent and various factors play a significant role in skill acquisition.
  2. Criticism towards the 10,000-hour rule came from meta-analyses in sports, revealing that practice only accounted for a small percentage of the difference in performance levels, emphasizing the contribution of genetics and other factors.
  3. Understanding the limits of practice is crucial as it challenges the notion that anyone can excel if they put in enough effort, and highlights that success is influenced by multiple elements beyond just practice.

Design for nostalgia

19 implied HN points • 28 Jan 22
  1. Autobiographical memory focuses on personal history, with a tendency to recall more memories from adolescence and early adulthood. This impacts how we perceive and remember events.
  2. Nostalgia has both pleasant and unpleasant elements, with a tendency to bring back memories from earlier stages of life. Designing with nostalgia in mind can create positive user experiences and be a powerful marketing tool.
  3. The 'youth bias' effect means that experiences and media encountered during early adulthood can have a long-lasting impact. This phenomenon is utilized in advertising and entertainment, shaping consumer preferences and cultural trends.

Best practices for moderated user testing

19 implied HN points • 09 Dec 21
🕹 Technology User Experience UX Design
  1. Moderated user testing requires active participation of a moderator and can be done in person or remotely.
  2. Moderators play key roles like being a gracious host, leader, and neutral observer during usability testing.
  3. To excel in moderated user testing, prepare well, manage time effectively, build trust with users, maintain a clear session structure, and use prompts, probes, and assists appropriately.