Evaluation of Master’s Thesis related to own research area ( UX, Eye tracking, User testing, improving conversion rates)
Title: The Role of Visual Attention and Eye Movements in Product Purchases on Websites Author: Tommaso Ceroni University: Utrecht University, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences Master’s Degree Course: Applied Cognitive Psychology
Level of Design: The design is straightforward and effective but lacks creativity and complexity, which might have added interest or depth to the reader. The structure is clear and has predictable composition which may feel overly simplistic and even a bit dry for readers familiar with the field. The design quality could be significantly enhanced by incorporating more detailed schemes and sketches, which could increase its visual appeal.
Degree of Innovation: The research is original to the extent that it goes further with how visual attention and decision making has been researched previously by looking at e-commerce situations. Nevertheless, the contribution could be increased by including different consumer characteristics (for example: how used they are to shopping online) or by manipulating other web page elements beyond product labels.
Independence: The thesis shows a high level of of independence, as the author has designed the study, collected data, analyzed results, and interpreted findings. The author demonstrates the ability to manage the research process and and make reasoned deductions from the results obtained.
Outline and Structure: The thesis is well-organized and follows a clear, logical structure. It includes all essential sections (introduction, methods, results, discussion) and maintains coherence throughout, and there is no inconsistency that would make it difficult to follow the content.
Degree of Communication: The author communicates ideas effectively, with clarity in the description of methods and findings. Pertaining to the relationship of cognitive psychology to eye tracking, relevant concepts are well covered, however some terminologies used in this area (i.e. fixation duration, AOI) might require more explanations and/or pictures.
Scope of the Work: The study scope is appropriate for a master’s thesis, focusing on a specific aspect of consumer behavior through a manageable experiment. In as much as the sample is rather small, the research scope is in harmony with the goals of the project and provides relevant information.
Orthography and Accuracy: The thesis has a few minor grammatical errors. Despite these minor issues, the thesis demonstrates overall good orthographic standards and accuracy.
Literature: The author draws on a strong foundation of relevant literature, particularly focusing on studies related to eye-tracking, attention, and decision-making. The references are appropriate and support the research questions, although including more recent studies on e-commerce or consumer behavior would strengthen the review.
I recently attended the World Usability Congress 2024 in Graz, and it was packed with insightful talks about user experience, accessibility, and how we as designers can better connect technology to the people who use it. Two talks, in particular, stood out to me – John Bowie’s presentation on how UX designers see things no one else can see, and Kent Eisenhuth’s talk about accessibility in design. These sessions really got me thinking about how these topics could help me with my master’s thesis.
In this blog post, I’ll show the key takeaways from those talks and explain how they provide crucial input for my thesis, both in terms of research and practical application, since I’ve changed my topic to designing an app which rewards people who make sustainable decisions in their everyday life in a gamified way either with real rewards like e.g. discounts or in a virtual way or both.
John Bowie on UX Challenges and the Importance of Seeing What Others Can’t
John Bowie’s talk hit on something that anyone working in design has probably experienced: the disconnect between engineers, product managers, and UX designers. Engineers and product managers often overlook UX problems because they’re so focused on making the product function. Bowie raised a critical point: How can we help others see what we see? How can UX designers make engineers and product managers aware of user experience issues that might be invisible to them?
He also cited a quote from Alan Cooper’s 1999 book The Inmates Are Running the Asylum:
„Our lives are becoming ever more centered around the whims, quips, decisions, and disasters of the high-tech industry. And these hardware, software, and technology developers don’t think like us. Despite appearances, business executives are simply not the ones in control of the high-tech world – it is the engineers who are running the show. We have let the inmates run the asylum.“
This perfectly captures the reality of how decisions in tech are often made without enough consideration for how real people will interact with products. In my project, where I’m working on making sustainability a part of everyday life through gamification, this insight is crucial. If I don’t stay focused on the user’s experience, my product could fall into the same trap of prioritizing technical functionality over actual usability.
Bowie also introduced the UX Maturity Model, a framework to assess how much an organization values and integrates UX into its processes. This is something that could come in handy for any UX designer trying to push for more user-centered design in their company. The model breaks organizations into six stages, from „Absent“ (UX doesn’t exist) to „User-driven“ (UX is a core part of the company’s culture).
Absent: UX is ignore
Limited: UX work is sporadic and unimportant
Emergent: There’s some UX work, but it’s inconsistent
Structured: UX practices exist but vary in effectiveness
Integrated: UX is widespread and effective
User-driven: UX is central to every part of the organization
For my thesis, this maturity model is a practical way to assess how different apps/websites that I might evaluate over time (or even my own design process) approach user-centered design. Knowing where a sustainability app or product falls on this scale helps me see the opportunities for where they could evolve to better engage with the users and create meaningful behavior change.
One of the most actionable parts of Bowie’s talk was his advice on asking three critical questions when designing for user experience: Relevance, Findability, and Effectiveness. These are things I need to consider when building my own project.
Relevance – Does the information or task help the user move closer to their goal, or is it just a detour? This is key when designing interactions in my app – everything needs to feel like it’s helping the user move forward.
Findability – Can users easily locate the information they need? Are they aware they need it? In my project, if users can’t find the eco-friendly habits or challenges they need to engage with, they’ll likely lose interest.
Effectiveness – Once the user finds what they’re looking for, can they easily use it? This ties directly into the usability of my app – if it’s not easy to use, no one will want to engage with it.
These questions help me keep the user at the center of the design process, ensuring the app stays simple, clear, and intuitive.
Kent Eisenhuth on Accessibility
Kent Eisenhuth’s talk on accessibility was also very interesting. Accessibility is often treated as an afterthought, but he argued that it should be a priority from the start of any design process. This is something I hadn’t considered as deeply before, but Eisenhuth showed how designing for accessibility can actually result in better design for everyone—not just for people with disabilities.
His talk was packed with practical tips on making data visualizations and interfaces more accessible. For example, he recommended using a combination of fills and borders to highlight important information, moving labels next to segments instead of using confusing legends, and using dark mode to reduce visual clutter and help users to focus.
One of Eisenhuth’s most interesting points to me was about data sonification, or using sound to describe charts and graphs. By thinking about different ways to present information – like using sound cues instead of relying solely on visual elements – one can reach a wider audience.
He also mentioned that sometimes, charts and graphs are just not a good solution. In some cases, offering a data table might be a better option for accessibility, as it allows users to navigate the information with ease, especially for people who rely on screen readers.
Conclusion
Both of these talks have helped me see how essential it is to consider every aspect of the user experience – from how users find and interact with information to ensuring the design is accessible for everyone. As I continue developing my thesis on gamifying sustainable habits, these insights will shape both the theoretical framework and the practical elements of my project. Ultimately, the goal is to create an app that not only helps users build sustainable habits but does so in a way that’s engaging, intuitive, and accessible for all.
A website that Kent Eisenhuth mentioned and that I found very interesting and might come in handy at some point to find inspiration, is Google’s open source design system Material 3: https://m3.material.io/
For the final blog post of this series, I have taken the time to prepare a comprehensive demonstration video, which provides a detailed overview of my low-fidelity prototype. This video is designed to give viewers an understanding of the basic functionalities and design elements of our prototype, showcasing its potential and the direction we are heading in with this project.
Video
Conclusions
The process of prototyping has been incredibly valuable in visualizing the potential of Story Teller. It has allowed me to identify key functionalities and design elements and brought to light areas that need further development and refinement. As I move forward, I plan to conduct further user testing to gain valuable feedback and insights. This feedback will inform my next iterations and help me continually improve and refine the tool. My ultimate goal is to create a user-friendly and intuitive platform that supports the creative process of interactive storytelling, as part of my final Master’s Thesis.
After conducting a thorough analysis of different research papers and exploring various existing authoring tools, I embarked on the journey of developing my own prototype. This process involved the examination of the strengths and weaknesses of each tool, as well as an in-depth understanding of the theories and methodologies presented in each research paper. With this knowledge, I then proceeded to apply what I had learned to the creation of my prototype. The objective of this blogpost is to document the process that I underwent during the prototyping phase.
Methodology
I began by listing all the sections I wanted to reimplement from StoryTec, including the G-Flash card system and Story Curve Visualization mode.
Story Editor: This is a free canvas where users can drag, resize, move, and zoom in and out of elements.
Scenes: These contain characters, interactive elements, and behaviors such as actions, dialogue, and events.
Complex Scenes (which I’ll refer to as Stages): These are the environments where scenes take place. They contain stage-specific elements and, of course, the scenes themselves.
Stage Editor: In StoryTec, this was a pluggable framework capable of constructing scenes in various ways. For ease of use, I will integrate this as a function of the Story Editor, utilizing a toolbar with drag-and-drop flashcards, similar to G-Flash. In my version, the cards will be fully customizable through the Property Editor.
Property Editor: This is a separate tab that adapts based on the selected item. It can add any kind of property to any element.
Action Set Editor: In StoryTec, this was a separate editor for setting the logic between element interactions. In my prototype, it will become a button in the Tool tab, connecting elements similarly to how Figma handles prototyping.
Asset Manager: A separate tab where uploaded assets can be dragged and dropped either onto the open canvas as images, videos, or sound, or onto elements as properties.
Story Curve Visualization: This is an option in the top bar that changes how the scenes are displayed, toggling from the free canvas to a double-axis view of the Story Curve.
After identifying the core features and buttons for my tool, I sketched a basic information architecture on paper. Following this, I created preliminary wireframes to visualize the page’s layout.
Pages, tabs and cards
Starting from the sketches, I prototyped a low-fidelity version of the main pages for my authoring tool.
The home page displays all the stories that a user might want to create, presented in a straightforward gallery.
Each Story file features an „infinite“ zoom canvas where elements, cards, and assets can be dragged and dropped, resized, opened, and minimized. This design maximizes flexibility of thought.
When an element is clicked, the Properties tab displays all details of that specific instance, and allows the creation of new properties if necessary. These properties can be used and referenced as logic variables when establishing connections between elements.
The Stage button in the Bottom Tool Bar offers two main interactions: the New Stage card and the Element card. Both can be dragged onto the canvas and resized to create the desired composition.
Similarly, the Scene button in the Bottom Tool Bar enables the user to draw a new scene or select one of the cards for characters, elements, or behaviors.
Finally, the Story Curve View visualizes different scenes on the Narration order/Story order axis. You can personalize this visualization using the settings tab.
Goals & Conclusion
The main goal of this prototype is to thoroughly test the usability of various complex features, particularly for beginners and new storytellers. I aim to conduct an extensive user test to gain insights into whether the basic principles of User Experience (UX) are being followed and function as intended.
After initial testing and result analysis, I’ll create a higher fidelity prototype. This version will focus more on the user interface, using feedback from the initial tests to ensure a smoother, more intuitive user experience.
In my next blog post, I’ll show the main features of this prototype through a detailed demo video. This will help me show the tool’s functionality and potential.
In my research for case studies on tools for storytelling I’ve read and analysed the two following papers, „G-Flash: A Simple, Graphical Authoring Environment for Interactive Non-Linear Stories“ and „StoryTec: A Digital Storytelling Platform for the Authoring and Experiencing of Interactive and Non-linear Stories“. They provide insightful perspectives on authoring tools designed for different user groups. These tools vary significantly in complexity and user experience, offering valuable insights for developing a prototype authoring tool for interactive, non-linear storytelling. My goal is to gather the insights from these research papers and use them to design my prototype. Furthermore, I will use insights from the research paper “Visualising Nonlinear Narratives with Story Curves”, already discussed in the previous blogpost, to have in mind clear UX goals for my prototype.
Summary
G-Flash and StoryTec are both digital storytelling platforms designed to support the creation of interactive and non-linear stories, but they differ in their specific features and approaches.
G-Flash, as described by Jumail et al. in 2011, focuses on providing guided learning and assistance to young children in creating digital stories using flashcards as the main media element. It emphasizes the tutored approach to guided learning, allowing students to receive the right amount of assistance without compromising their creativity and motivation. The system architecture of G-Flash is Flash-based and web-based, with a focus on using illustrated flashcards to guide story creation.
On the other hand, StoryTec, as introduced by Göbel et al. in 2018, is a digital storytelling platform that enables the authoring and experiencing of interactive and non-linear stories. It provides an authoring environment with different editors for creating and manipulating story units, as well as a runtime engine for controlling interactive scenarios during runtime. StoryTec also includes a Story Editor for managing story structures and an Action Set Editor for defining transitions among scenes..
In summary, G-Flash focuses on providing guided learning and assistance to young children using flashcards, while StoryTec is designed to enable the creation and visualization of interactive and non-linear stories through its authoring environment and runtime engine.
Both platforms aim to facilitate the creation of digital stories, but G-Flash emphasizes guided learning for children, while StoryTec provides a comprehensive authoring framework for interactive and non-linear narratives.
My conclusions
From G-Flash, I could incorporate the concept of guided learning and assistance giving within the digital storytelling application to help beginner creative writers. This can be achieved by providing a tutored approach and using flashcards-like visuals as a media element to guide story creation. According to the study, the use of illustrated flashcards motivates children and helps them recall their experiences; this can be a valuable feature to include in my authoring tool to improve recall of more complex events in a non-linear story.
From StoryTec, I can take the focus on a user-friendly and intuitive graphical user interface (GUI) for the authoring environment to help beginner creative writers without programming skills to create interactive stories. Additionally, the separation of story structure and story content in StoryTec can be a valuable insight to consider when developing your authoring tool, as it allows for flexibility in creating and playing different story elements based on the same structure. A runtime engine for the interactive storytelling platform would be interesting to implement but requires more research.
To enhance the user experience, I want to incorporate the visualization technique of Story Curves, [Blogpost 6] to reveal nonlinear narrative patterns and provide a helpful overview of the story structure. This visualization method can be used to help beginner creative writers understand the nonlinear narrative patterns in their stories and provide a visual representation of the story’s structure. I am going to take in consideration UX issues discussed in the Story Curve paper regarding the Story Explorer tool:
Readability and Learnability: The evaluation of Story Explorer highlighted that some participants had difficulty in reading both story and narrative order at the same time. This suggests that providing a clear distinction between different narrative orders and visual aids for reading two axes could be useful for reading story curves.
Control of Origin and Time Jumps: Participants in the evaluation study of Story Explorer struggled with the initial disorientation caused by the placement of the origin at the upper left corner and confusion between flashforwards and flashbacks. The analysis suggested that providing control of the origin of the axes and visual aids for time jumps could improve user experience.
Scalability and Clean Visualization: Story Explorer integrated mechanisms to ensure a clean and scalable visualization, even for stories with hundreds of scenes. The semantic zoom feature with different representations for story elements was identified as a key factor in preventing clutter in the story graph representation.
In conclusion, by combining the insights from G-Flash, StoryTec and Story Explorer I can develop an authoring tool that provides guided learning, assistance giving, and a user-friendly interface for creating interactive, non-linear stories using the Story Curves visualization Method.
References
Jumail, D. R. A. Rambli and S. Sulaiman, „G-Flash: An authoring tool for guided digital storytelling,“ 2011 IEEE Symposium on Computers & Informatics, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2011, pp. 396-401, doi: 10.1109/ISCI.2011.5958948.
S. Göbel, L. Salvatore and R. Konrad, „StoryTec: A Digital Storytelling Platform for the Authoring and Experiencing of Interactive and Non-Linear Stories,“ 2008 International Conference on Automated Solutions for Cross Media Content and Multi-Channel Distribution, Florence, Italy, 2008, pp. 103-110, doi: 10.1109/AXMEDIS.2008.45.
N. W. Kim, B. Bach, H. Im, S. Schriber, M. Gross and H. Pfister, „Visualizing Nonlinear Narratives with Story Curves,“ in IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics, vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 595-604, Jan. 2018, doi: 10.1109/TVCG.2017.2744118.
Environmental Interface: Designers must consider the entire surrounding environment as a potential interface, moving beyond the confines of a flat screen.
Comfortable Focusing Range: Interactive elements should be placed within a range of half a meter to 20 meters, the comfortable focusing distance for human eyes.
Beyond Reach: For interacting with objects 20 meters away, MR utilizes tools like handheld controllers or technologies such as eye tracking and hand recognition.
Eye Movement
The human eye comfortably moves 30°-35° in all directions, creating a field of view (FoV) of about 60°. Key UI elements should be placed within this range for easy accessibility.
Key Elements are arranged in a FoV of ~60°
Arms Reach
The average arm’s length is 50–70 cm. Essential interactions should be positioned at this distance for ease of use.
Designing for Distance
Drawing from Kharis O’Connell’s “Designing for Mixed Reality”, the interaction space is divided into three layers:
Interaction Plane: Core UI elements are placed within arm’s reach.
Mid-Zone: For placement of virtual objects in MR.
Legibility Horizon: The limit for comfortable focus and reading, approximately 20 meters. Beyond this, only images should be used.
Addressing User Fatigue
Ease of Exit: Always provide a straightforward method to exit or pause, like a button.
Save Functionality: Allow users to save progress to prevent data loss and alleviate exit anxiety.
Scaling and Interaction
Button Size: Ensure buttons are large enough, with a minimum size of 2 centimeters.
Natural Interactions: Mimic real-world interactions, like picking up a mug by its handle.
Poses and Gestures
Clear Instructions: Given the novelty of MR, provide explicit instructions for poses and gestures.
Simplicity: Use poses and gestures sparingly to avoid overwhelming users.
Feedback and Guidance
System Feedback: Implement feedback mechanisms like haptic feedback or color changes when interacting with virtual elements.
Clear Guidance: Offer concise and clear instructions, crucial in the unfamiliar terrain of MR.
Mixed Reality is not just a new technology; it’s a new way of interacting with our world. As we design for MR, we must consider the unique physical and perceptual aspects of this medium. By focusing on intuitive interactions, comfortable viewing distances, and clear instructions, we can create MR experiences that are not only engaging but also accessible and user-friendly. The future of MR is bright, and as designers and technologists, it’s our responsibility to pave the way for this exciting new era of digital interaction.
This case study from Microsoft’s HoloStudio highlights the unique challenges and innovative solutions in designing UI and interaction experiences in mixed reality. It emphasizes the importance of user comfort, non-intrusive alerts, and seamless interaction between UI elements and holograms.
Problem 1: Reluctance to Move in a Virtual Environment
In HoloStudio, Microsoft initially designed the Workbench as a rectangle, akin to a real-world desk. However, they noticed a behavioral pattern: users were hesitant to move around. This reluctance was attributed to a lifetime of conditioning to stay still while working at a desk or computer. To counteract this, the Workbench was redesigned into a circular shape, eliminating the notion of a ‚front‘ position. This encouraged users to move around and explore their 3D creations from all angles.
Circular Environment to encourage Users to move around.
Key Learning: Comfort for the user is paramount. Essential UI elements, for instance, could be anchored to the virtual hand, reducing the need for physical movement to access them.
Problem 2: Disruptive Modal Dialogs
In 3D environments, traditional modal dialogs can be intrusive, popping up unexpectedly and disrupting the user experience. Microsoft experimented with various solutions and finally adopted a „thought bubble“ system. This system used visual cues like pulsing tendrils to subtly direct user attention where needed in the application, avoiding the abruptness of traditional pop-ups.
Dialogue Window guiding User to Action
Key Learning: Alerting users in 3D environments requires more finesse. Using attention directors like spatial sound, light rays, or thought bubbles can effectively guide users without being obtrusive.
Problem 3: UI Obstruction by Other Holograms
A common challenge in mixed reality is the obstruction of UI controls by other holograms. Microsoft’s initial solution of moving UI controls closer to the user proved uncomfortable, as it created a disconnect between the control and the associated hologram. The final solution was to ‚ghost‘ the UI control at the same distance as its associated hologram, maintaining a sense of connection while ensuring visibility and accessibility.
More Accessible UI
Key Learning: Accessibility of UI controls is crucial, even when obstructed. Innovative solutions are needed to ensure users can interact with holograms and controls seamlessly in the mixed reality environment.
In the following Blog Post I will go more in-depth into the Topic UX / UI in mixed reality.
In previous blog post, I discussed the importance of multi-sensory design in creating immersive user experiences. This post, offers a comprehensive look at sensory appeal, covering its definition, mechanisms, and importance in UX design. Additionally, it provides practical advice on integrating sensory appeal into design processes while addressing associated challenges.
When it comes to UX design, multi-sensory design appeal plays a major role in producing a memorable and engaging user experience. By offering consumers more than simply visual and aural stimulation, it contributes to an improvement in user pleasure and engagement. This can facilitate the development of a more robust emotional bond between consumers and a good, service, or brand.
Different types of Sensory Stimuli
Visual:
Color: Utilizing color to elicit emotions, establish contrast, and enhance visual allure.
Contrast: Employing contrast to heighten visual interest and optimize usability.
Layout: Crafting intuitive and visually coherent layouts to facilitate seamless navigation.
Auditory:
Sound Effects: Integrating auditory cues to provide interactive feedback and enrich user experiences.
Background Music: Utilizing ambient music to set atmospheres and evoke desired emotional responses.
Voiceovers: Incorporating narrations to deliver supplementary information and enhance user guidance.
Olfactory:
Scents: Leveraging aromas to evoke specific emotions or associations, enhancing immersion.
Aromatherapy: Harnessing scents for their therapeutic properties to augment user experiences.
Gustatory:
Flavors: Introducing flavors to enhance sensory engagement and augment product appeal.
Food Presentation: Employing aesthetic food presentations to elevate sensory experiences.
Tactile:
Touch: Incorporating tactile feedback to provide users with tangible interactions.
Texture: Integrating textural elements to enrich sensory perceptions and tactile experiences.
Application in UX Design
Sensory Stimulation: In UX design, sensory appeal operates by delivering multi-dimensional stimuli that transcend mere visual and auditory engagement. This approach cultivates immersive and memorable experiences, fostering deeper connections between users and the subject matter.
Emotional Connectivity: By engaging multiple senses, sensory appeal cultivates emotional resonance, fostering stronger bonds between users and products, services, or brands. This emotional connectivity enhances user engagement and satisfaction, thereby optimizing overall user experiences.
A Few Tips for Incorporating Sensory Appeal in UX Design
Select Relevant Sensory Stimuli:
Before infusing sensory appeal into UX design, it’s crucial to pinpoint the sensory stimuli that best suit the product or service. For instance, a bakery might leverage the aroma of freshly baked cookies, while a gaming app could benefit from immersive sound effects.
Maintain Balance and Consistency:
Incorporate sensory stimuli judiciously and consistently. Overloading users with sensory input can overwhelm them, while insufficient stimulation may lead to a lackluster experience. Strive for a harmonious blend that enriches without overpowering.
Account for User Context:
Consider the context in which users engage with the product or service. Factors like environment and user preferences should inform decisions about sensory elements. For example, users in quiet public spaces may prefer minimal auditory distractions.
Test and Refine Continuously:
Regular testing and refinement are essential to ensure that sensory appeal enhances the user experience effectively. Utilize user feedback and iterative design processes to fine-tune sensory elements and gauge their impact on user engagement.
Challenges and Limitations of Incorporating Sensory Appeal into UX Design
Technical Limitations:
Some devices may lack the capability to support certain sensory stimuli, such as smell or taste. Designers must navigate these constraints creatively to deliver compelling sensory experiences within technical boundaries.
User Preference and Accessibility:
User preferences vary, and certain sensory elements may not be universally appealing or accessible. Designers should consider inclusivity and accommodate diverse user needs, ensuring that sensory appeal enhances rather than hinders usability.
Cost Considerations:
Implementing sensory appeal, particularly advanced features like haptic feedback or virtual reality, can incur significant costs. Companies must assess the cost-effectiveness of integrating sensory elements against potential benefits to justify investment in UX enhancement.
In summary, sensory appeal is a cornerstone of effective UX design, enriching user experiences beyond visual and auditory realms. When integrated thoughtfully, sensory stimuli foster emotional connections, bolster brand recognition, and differentiate products in competitive markets. However, designers must navigate technical constraints, accommodate user diversity, and manage costs to leverage sensory appeal successfully. By striking a balance, considering user context, iteratively refining designs, and addressing challenges, companies can create immersive, engaging, and memorable user experiences that elevate their brand presence and competitive edge.
To continue the thread from last week of better understanding the user at festivals, I made and sent out at short survey. I sent this survey to my colleagues at FH Joanneum, but i also shared it with friends and colleagues in Norway. The survey consisted of seven questions, and the aim of the survey was to understand what frustrated user, other than aspects connected to the actual performing artist. I also decided to keep the survey very short, to get a glimpse into the problems and receive more answers, rather than a longer more detailed survey, that is harder to get people to fill out.
The seven questions included in the survey where:
What is your age (multiple choice)
18
18-25
25-30
30-40
40+
How often do you attend festivals (multiple choice)
3+ times a year
2-3 times a year
1-2 times a year
1 time a year
Less than once a year
What is your main motivation for attending festivals (multiple choice)
The artist playing
The festival site
Other cultural events hosted by the festival
Other:
What are the main issues you have faced before attending a festival
Buying tickets
Organizing transport
Organizing sleeping situation
Other:
What are the main issues you have faced while attending the festival
Long queues for food and drink
Long queues for bathrooms
Dirty bathrooms
Difficult to get into the festival grounds
Hard to navigate festival grounds
Other:
What issue would you say negatively impacts your experience at the festival the most
Here you filled in your own short answer
What aspects of festivals, other than the musical artist, positively impacts your experience the most?
Here you filled in your own short answer
Results
I am very happy with the results from the survey, as it gives good insight into the issues facing users. I have received 60 responses to the survey, which even though it is not a very large sample size it is enough to see some patterns. However there are some important factors to consider from the responses.
63.3% of responders where between 18-25, 31.7% where 25-30. So almost all of the responders are quite young
13.3% go to festival 3+ times a year, 13.3% go 2-3 times and 43.3% go 1-2 times. So most responders are also quite frequent festival goers
This means that my results will be skewed towards the issues and motivations that face younger and more frequent festival goers. My project has been going more and more in the direction of these types of festivals, so i still think that these results are very valuable for me, but it is still an important factor to remember.
Before the festival: the main issues that people face are Organizing transport (45%), Organizing sleeping situations (50%) and buying tickets (28.3%). These are three very concrete issues that people face, however that i are primarily issues that are resolved by the time you attend a festival, and they did not show up as issues once people where at festivals. For future research it would be very interesting how often these stop people from attending, but that was not the focus of this survey.
While attending the festival: The biggest issues people faced where Long queues for food and drinks (60%), Long queues for bathrooms (53.3%), Dirty bathrooms (41.7%). However Difficult to get into festival grounds was an issues that only 8.3% responded to, so this is a much smaller issue than i first believed when i started this project. Hard to navigate festival grounds was also an issue for about (16.7%), however this would be extremely dependent on the type and size of festival you are attending, so it is harder to conclude generally with this.
When asked what negatively affected people the most at festivals, responders to the survey could write their own answers. From the answers i created 8 categories
Festival grounds: 11 people
Other People: 10
Weather: 5
Food/Drink: 10
Waiting: 13
Sanitation: 7
Other: 3
Universal design: 1
Weather and how other people behave are hard for a festival to control, but the spatial organization of festival grounds, Food/Drink, sanitation and waiting are all things that are within the control of the festival. So these are areas that can be greatly improved.
For what positively impacts the experience the most the results are a lot more clear, here i found 4 categories:
Festival grounds: 16
Other people: 31
Food/drinks: 4
Activities: 9
So here Other People is without a doubt the most important thing for positive experiences, the answers here where mostly about fun with friends, hanging out at camp, meeting strangers, vibes. I think therefore that one of the most important thing a festival can do is how do you create those positive meetings between people. A festival can get away with not the best queue system for beer, or long lines for bathrooms if the vibes and the energy that people have together is really good. However i think there is a line somewhere, at some point the food, sanitation and festival organization can get so bad i ruins for the vibes. This is something i wish to continue to look into.
That was the results from this section of research.
In real life, humans interact with objects using their senses. The five basic senses – sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell – play an essential role when perceiving the world. Multi-sensory design is becoming increasingly important in this age of digital interactions. However, the most unforgettable experiences are usually multi-sensory based. I will discuss exploring the multi-sensory design case studies and artworks during my research. I will analyse how to interact with multiple senses in designing products or in an artistic way and in which ways it is possible.
An example of fully multi-sensory experience can be food! Food is about more than just taste; it is also about the way it looks, smells, feels, and sounds. Combining these sensory inputs results in a unique and memorable experience that everyone can enjoy. Actually, multi-sensory food experiences are growing in popularity, with many food and beverage companies developing innovative products that appeal to multiple senses.
Food is a complete multi-sensory experience.
Another example of multi-sensory design is from Volkswagen. In 2009, Volkswagen undertook a unique project in Sweden by transforming an ordinary subway staircase into a giant piano. Their idea was to get people to abandon the escalator and head for the stairs. Each step became a musical note, and soon everyone was jamming on the stairs. It wasn’t just about the music; It was about feeling and having fun. The project showed that making everyday things like stairs more enjoyable can actually make people choose healthier options. It’s a great example of how using multi-sensory design can turn ordinary things into exciting experiences.
To continue with my research questions, these are the questions that I will work on during my research;
Central Research Questions:
How to approach basic senses with using interaction design?
How can we transfer real-life analog multi-sensory interaction to the digital?
Sub-questions:
What is sensory design?
How do you create a sensory experience?
What is multisensory design?
What is the role of sensory design in making user experience more effective?
Revelance for Design Fields:
The relevance of multi-sensory design is quite wide in design fields. Most of the time, we can associate any design in which the senses are used with sensory design. First, in user experience design, it is about how users establish connections between senses and products, in what ways they interact and possible scenarios. On the other hand, from an artistic point of view, it is possible to see multi-sensory design in different, even multi-sensory forms in installations and artistic works.
Approaches to Solve Issues/Questions:
To adress the research questions, I will work on various approaches;
Analyzing case studies of successful sensory interaction design projects
Collaborating/Interview with experts in fields such as psychology or design to better understand sensory perception and the role in design.
Collecting data on which different areas and how sensory design is used in UX/Design fields.
Exploring the development of new technologies and devices that appeal to sensory experiences.
Challenges in Research:
Minimizing the subject that has wide and diverse areas.
Finding reliable and up-to-date research in this evolving field.
Personal Motivation:
I’m really interested in learning about multi-sensory design, especially how products can connect with our senses. Also I’m excited to examine case studies to understand how designs can go beyond just being useful and actually make us feel something. Looking at artworks in this area inspires and helps me think outside the box when it comes to design. I also wonder how our emotions and behaviors are affected by what we see, hear, and feel. Mixing things like textures, colors, sounds and smells seems like a fun way to get creative with design; creating products that not only work well, but also make people feel something special.
Relevant Institutions:
Interaction Design Foundation
MIT Media Lab
NN Group
Research Gate
Preview of Upcoming Research Phase:
Projected steps in the research process
In the following blogs I will talk about explaning multi-sensory design and the role, delve deeper into the principles of multi-sensory interaction design, analysing successful case studies, and hopefully collaborating with experts in the field.
