2023 Blogs

Chen and colleagues evaluated how culture influences responses to stimuli; their findings can likely be extended to experiencing design generally.  The investigators report that “Native Mandarin speakers from China and native English speakers from the United States were presented with audiovisual emotional stimuli from their own culture (i.e., familiar) and from a different culture (i.e., unfamiliar) and asked to evaluate the emotion from one of the two modalities.

Wang and Chang add to the body of literature linking colors and tastes.  They report that their “study takes popcorn packaging as an example to explore the impact of packaging color on consumers' taste perception and preference evaluation. . . . Four experimental package design colors (red, blue, yellow, and white) and three popcorn tastes (sweet, salty, and tasteless) were used. . . . The results of this study indicated that . . . yellow and red packaging are suitable for a sweet product, blue is suitable for a salty product, and white is suitable for a tasteless product.”

Naletelich and colleagues studied the different effects of representational and abstract images on consumer thoughts regarding products. They share that “Four experimental studies— including one controlled laboratory experiment and one online behavioral response study—show that when representational imagery is matched with a prevention-focused and abstract imagery with a promotion-focused mindset or framed message, consumer outcomes are enhanced.

Allen probed scent-based experiences in New Zealand during COVID-19-related lockdowns.  She determined that “changes in suburban smells signal disruption to daily life as a result of the government’s social and economic pandemic-response measures. For instance, the empty cold smell of the mall usually warm and bustling with activity, conveys the isolation and loss of social connectedness produced by lockdown restrictions. Similarly, the dry smell of concrete dust created by the closure and demolition of a high-street bank reflects the slowing of the national economy.

Liu, Wu, and Awan probed how touching products influences attitudes about them.  They found that “Consumers rely on physical touch in offline shopping and vicarious touch (i.e., imagining touch) in online shopping to develop their attitudes toward a product. . . . This study conducted a meta-analysis. . . . In general, relative to not touching, touching had a positive effect on consumers' attitudes toward a product . . . and the effect size was moderate.

Laplace and Guastavino studied acoustics in churches. They found that “sound [in churches] acquires ‘a life of its own,’ abstracted from the sound sources, unlike other everyday listening situations where sounds are experienced as pointers to object or agents who produce sound. . . . Church acoustics can also reinforce the impression that sounds are detached from their sources. Sound phenomena acquire a form of agency to directly affect participants’ perceptions, reflections and mood, placing them in a world of its own where time passes more slowly and space functions differently.”

Zhang and colleagues link air temperature and perceived indoor air quality in university classrooms; it seems likely that their findings are also relevant in other contexts.  The researchers found that “Perceived air quality was reduced significantly as indoor temperature increased. . . . Higher outdoor air supply rate is recommended when indoor temperature rises. . . .

Mercier and Lubart link enhanced creative thinking to playing board games.  They share that “Games are powerful educational tools, and several early studies have shown the potential of video games and role-playing games to improve creativity. . . . the first study [Marcier and Lubart conducted] showed that the frequency of playing board games was positively correlated with several components of creative potential: divergent thinking, openness to experiences, creative self-efficacy and creative personal identity. . . .

Research on the benefits of gardening continues to accumulate.  Scientists at the University of Colorado Boulder report that “the first-ever, randomized, controlled trial of community gardening found that those who started gardening ate more fiber and got more physical activity—two known ways to reduce risk of cancer and chronic diseases. They also saw their levels of stress and anxiety significantly decrease. . . . those who came into the study most stressed and anxious seeing the greatest reduction in mental health issues.

Speed, Papies, and Majid studied relationships among sensory experiences.  They share that “we found unhealthy food concepts are more strongly associated with gustation [taste], olfaction, and interoception [sensing body signals, such as hunger] than healthy food concepts. . . . unhealthy food concepts were more strongly associated with all perceptual modalities than healthy food concepts. . . . Overall, we find multimodal sensory experience underlies people’s belief that unhealthy food is more attractive than healthy food.”