UX Psychology 101

Foundation

Cognitive psychology is the study of mental processes such as attention, language use, memory, perception, problem solving, creativity, and thinking.

Behaviourism is an approach to psychology that focuses on an individual's behaviour. It combines elements of philosophy, methodology, and theory.

Social psychology is the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others.

Cognitive psychology Behaviourism Social

psychology

Point of view

User OwnerChoice & preference Design decisionsInteractions

Examples

BehaviourismCognitive psychology

Social psychology

System thinking Decision paralysis Sosial validation

Cognition

Human factor loads

Cognitive demands

Visual demands

Motor demands

Cognition and memory

System 1 & System 2 thinking

Kahneman’s central thesis is a dichotomy between two modes of thought: "System 1" is fast, instinctive and emotional; "System 2" is slower, more deliberative, and more logical.

System 1 & 2 thinking

13 x 17

Anchoring

1 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 5 x 6 x 7 x 8Average estimate: 512

8 x 7 x 6 x 5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1Average estimate: 2250

Behaviour

Decision paralysis

Ability to process information

Number of presented choices

Decision paralysis

The Jam Study

Sheena Iyengar, Mark Lepper: The Jam Study, 2000

• The large display attracted more interest than the small one. But when the time came to purchase, people who saw the large display were one-tenth as likely to buy as people who saw the small display.

• When there is too much choice, consumers are less likely to buy anything at all, and if they do buy, they are less satisfied with their selection.

• These studies and others have shown not only that excessive choice can produce “choice paralysis,” but also that it can reduce people’s satisfaction with their decisions, even if they made good ones.

• Choice is good for us, but its relationship to satisfaction appears to be more complicated than we had assumed. Eventually, each new option makes us feel worse off than we did before.

Findings

https://hbr.org/2006/06/more-isnt-always-better

Social

The Bystander Effect

The Bystander Effect

Latane, Darley: Group Inhibition of Bystander Intervention in Emergencies

One bystander

Five bystanders

Gives help 85% of the time

Gives help 31% of the time

Social Validation

Psychological phenomenon where one or more passive individuals

follow or conform to the actions of others within a group

Chen, Yi-Fen: Herd behaviour in purchasing books online

Social ValidationRatings vs. no ratings

Sales volumes vs. ratings

Peer vs. expert recommendations

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