Psychology in UX Design: The Science of Making People Happy
Many newcomers to UX design are taken aback when they learn that knowledge of human psychology is just as important as graphic design skills. Experience lies in the realm of human feelings, emotions, and reactions—all of which belong to psychology.
It may seem that the most basic UX conventions, such as "make the main button large and bright," are obvious. But these aren't just established ways of designing similar sites; they are based on psychological principles discovered by scientists and confirmed by experiments.
The Tip of the Iceberg: Good UX. Psychology and Research
You may hear terms like UI/UX psychology, interface psychology, or product design psychology to explain how psychology is used in UX.
In the era of human-centered design, finding ways to make users happier is one of the most important tasks for a UX researcher.
You don't need a psychology degree to grasp the principles of UX design psychology; they are simple and often intuitive. Once you learn them, your perspective on website design will change.
We will explore a few key principles of UX psychology that will help you understand why designers propose the solutions they do. Why do many websites look the same? Is it because designers don't like to experiment? Let's find out what UX laws tell us.
1. The Principle of Eternal Habit. Don't Fix What Works
This is one of the fundamental principles of UI/UX design. People get used to certain symbols, triggers, and behavioral patterns and become frustrated when they can't follow the beaten path.
What does this mean for UX design? It means it's best to follow established page structures. Suppose a designer decides to replace the traditional hamburger menu button (three horizontal lines) with a quirky symbol. Yes, it might look cool from an original design perspective, but most users won't appreciate it.
The principle of eternal habit is one reason why websites often look similar: people are used to it, and forcing them out of their habit leads to dissatisfaction.
This rule is simple and obvious, but in a digital industry where innovation is highly valued, the temptation to experiment with design is strong. UX designers must resist this urge unless they have proof that their target users will appreciate this "system break." Psychology tells us that the average person is more conservative than the average product development team member.
2. Validation. Conformity. Following the Crowd
Imagine you are part of a group study testing your vision. You are shown three lines and asked which one matches the length of a fourth.
The answer seems simple until you hear other people start answering "B." You begin to doubt and trust your eyes less. Later, you learn the study was about psychology, not eyesight. The real goal was to see how much people tend to agree with the majority. This is known as the Asch experiment, and it proved that most people change their opinion to conform to the majority.
This psychological effect is often used in politics, but it can also be applied in UX design. Most companies place testimonials from past clients on landing pages to make potential customers feel their choice is validated by others who had a positive experience.
Some companies simply post a generic positive review with a stock-like photo, but even such "proof" has a comforting effect on a basic level.
3. Hick's Law. Can There Be Too Much Jam?
Have you ever lingered for five minutes in front of the jam shelf at the supermarket, unable to choose from 30 different jars? We should be happy to have such variety, yet we feel completely exhausted after spending an hour in the supermarket making all those decisions.
The "too much jam" effect was discovered when psychologists set up a tasting table with 24 jam flavors one day and only 6 flavors the next day. The study showed that people were 10 times more likely to buy jam when they had fewer choices, even though the table with 24 flavors initially attracted more people.
This phenomenon is also called "choice paralysis" and is widely used in marketing and UX design psychology.
Hick's Law states that increasing the number of choices leads to a logarithmic increase in decision time. In the digital world, where people consider a 3-second page load too long, too many options can ruin the experience. Users become frustrated and are likely to leave the page without making a decision.
Therefore, the golden rule of UX design is to keep menus as short as possible. Less frequently used items can be hidden under an "Other" section.
4. Errors. To Delete or Not to Delete?
As psychology (and life) tells us, sometimes doing things wrong is part of human nature. The product team's goal is to make the product error-proof, but even the best team cannot prevent errors caused by users themselves. These errors lead to dissatisfied users, which becomes an issue for the overall experience.
What can UX designers do about human errors? Completely avoiding them is impossible, but knowing some psychological traits can help minimize frustration and soften the negative impact. Here are a few rules for handling errors in UX design:
Add "Are you sure?" pop-ups and "Cancel" buttons. These are things we take for granted but that save us from many mistakes daily. We consider Gmail's "Undo Send" option one of Google's best UX design ideas. Sending emails instantly is great, but sacrificing just a few seconds allows users to avoid many errors.
- Inform users about errors as quickly as possible. Have you ever filled out a long registration form only to find out the password cannot be longer than 8 characters? And then had to fill it out again. Sites that highlight the text field in red as soon as an incorrect password is entered help catch errors early, when they are easiest to fix.
- Make error messages friendly and helpful. Instead of just writing "Error!" suggest possible solutions. "Contact our support team, and we'll resolve the issue promptly" sounds much more reassuring and makes people feel they are not alone in the problem. The modern trend of creating human-like friendly interfaces has led many apps and websites to use this approach.
5. Emotions. Designing for Happiness
The human brain has two decision-making systems: a fast one based on emotions, and a slow one based on rational thinking. Psychologist Daniel Kahneman wrote extensively about this, and much of cognitive psychology in UX design is based on his findings.
Although many people don't realize they rely on emotions when making decisions, the pattern holds. Sometimes the rational part of the brain later finds logical arguments to justify a quick emotional choice. Currently, rational decisions are considered more reliable, despite various biases in "rational" thinking. Logical thinking naturally fits into the product development process, but it's important not to underestimate the emotional side of humans.
Alongside emotions stands the "principle of beauty." It is fairly intuitive: people tend to trust websites and apps that look beautiful, such as those with an attractive and clean design. Of course, a beautiful appearance does not compensate for poor functionality and usability, but combined with good product development, it definitely enhances the overall user experience.
6. The Serial Position Effect. Taking Sides
This rule may not be the most intuitive. It states that from a row of objects, people pay more attention to those at the ends rather than in the middle. Therefore, most apps try to place the most important buttons on the sides.
7. The Von Restorff Effect. The Science of Catching Attention
Behind this fancy term lies a simple rule: among many objects, people tend to remember the one that stands out, say, by a different color. This is how a classic pricing page works: designers try to draw users' attention to the benefits of the premium version by highlighting them with color and contrast.
Much of psychology in UX design is aimed at this: capturing the user's attention. Here are a few more commonly used principles.
8. Reading Pattern. F-Shaped Pattern
People are accustomed to reading pages in an F-shaped pattern, fading toward the bottom. This pattern influences the placement of the most important information and visual elements: the best spots are the top and left side.
9. Colors. A Strategy for Emphasis
When we think of grabbing attention, the first thing that comes to mind is colors. The most common color schemes used in UX design rely on psychological principles of perception.
The accent color should be bright and contrast with the rest of the page. Importantly, it should be used in small doses, no more than 10%. Look at the top of this page. The orange accent color is used only for buttons and links.
Summary
These 9 principles are just the tip of the iceberg of UX design psychology. And these rules should be treated only as assumptions: every decision must be tested on users to prove whether it is right or wrong.