Understand these psychological concepts to achieve excellent UX and apply them to frontend design.
Aesthetic-Usability Effect: The Aesthetic-Usability Effect refers to the phenomenon where a beautifully designed product or interface is perceived as more usable than one that is not.
Anchor Effect: The Anchor Effect is a psychological phenomenon where users tend to evaluate subsequent information based on previously presented information (the anchor).
Banner Blindness: Banner Blindness refers to the phenomenon where users unconsciously ignore advertising banners on websites.
Cognitive Load: Cognitive Load refers to the amount of mental energy required for users to process and understand information.
Confirmation Bias: Confirmation Bias is the phenomenon where people preferentially accept information that aligns with their existing beliefs or hypotheses, while ignoring or denying contradictory information.
Curiosity Gap: The Curiosity Gap is a UX technique that piques users' interest and prompts them to take action in order to fill an information gap.
Decision Fatigue: Decision Fatigue is the phenomenon where repeated decision-making makes it difficult for users to make rational choices as the number of decisions increases.
Decoy Effect: The Decoy Effect is a persuasion technique where a decoy option is provided when there are multiple options (such as products or prices), making other options seem more attractive to users.
Default Bias: Default Bias refers to the phenomenon where people tend to stick with the presented default value when given choices, unless the incentive to change is compelling.
Doherty Threshold: The Doherty Threshold in user experience refers to the threshold where the risk of users losing interest increases if they wait more than 0.4 seconds. This threshold is commonly called the "0.4-second wall".
Empathy Gap: The Empathy Gap in UX is a concept that refers to when designers or developers fail to empathize with users' emotions, needs, and perspectives.
Endowment Effect: The Endowment Effect refers to the tendency for people to overvalue items they already own, regardless of market value, more than items they do not possess.
Expectation Bias: Expectation Bias is a psychological phenomenon where people's pre-existing expectations or preconceptions influence their actual experiences and evaluations.
Familiarity Bias: Familiarity Bias refers to the tendency for people to feel a sense of familiarity towards designs or functions they have experienced or seen before.
Foot in the Door Effect: The Foot in the Door Effect, also known as the step-by-step request effect, is the phenomenon where people are more likely to accept larger requests after first accepting smaller ones.
Framing Effect: The Framing Effect is a psychological phenomenon where people's judgments are more influenced by the way information is presented (or wording) than the information itself.
Gamification: Gamification refers to an approach that incorporates game elements and mechanisms to boost user motivation and promote problem-solving.
Goal Gradient Effect: The Goal Gradient Effect is a psychological phenomenon where users accelerate their actions and efforts as they get closer to a goal.
Halo Effect: The Halo Effect is the phenomenon where a company is respected and highly evaluated by consumers when it is perceived as fulfilling authentic social responsibility.
Hawthorne Effect: The Hawthorne Effect, also known as the observation effect, refers to the tendency for people to change their behavior due to awareness of being observed.
Intentional Friction: Intentional Friction is a design technique in user experience (UX) that aims to intentionally add steps or delay user actions to hinder them.
Labor Illusion: The Labor Illusion refers to the phenomenon where users perceive a service as more valuable by making it appear that effort and time are being spent in the process of providing the service to them.
Loss Aversion: Loss Aversion refers to users' tendency or behavior to avoid potential losses. This psychological phenomenon is based on people's desire to avoid losses more than to gain benefits.
Nudge: The Nudge Effect is a design technique that effectively and non-coercively guides users' decision-making and behavior in the direction they desire.
Peak-End Rule: The Peak-End Rule is a principle where people evaluate an experience not based on the average or total, but by emphasizing the peak moment (the highest point) and the end moment of the experience.
Priming: Priming refers to the phenomenon where prior stimuli (information) consciously or unconsciously influence subsequent behavior.
Progressive Disclosure: Progressive Disclosure is a user experience (UX) design technique that displays information and functions in stages, allowing users to access the necessary information and functions when needed.
Pygmalion Effect: In the context of user experience (UX), the Pygmalion Effect is the phenomenon where users' expectations or beliefs about a product or service tend to become a reality.
Reactance: Reactance refers to the psychological resistance that occurs when users feel constrained or restricted.
Reactive Onboarding: Reactive Onboarding refers to an onboarding process that is displayed in response to users' actions and needs.
Scarcity: The Scarcity Effect refers to the phenomenon where consumers perceive a product as more valuable and increase their purchase intent when the available quantity of the product is limited or feels difficult to obtain.
Selective Attention: Selective Attention refers to the tendency for users to focus on purpose-aligned information and tasks while ignoring other irrelevant stimuli or information, even in information-overloaded situations.
Serial Position Effect: The Serial Position Effect is a cognitive phenomenon where items at the beginning and end of a list or group of information are easier to remember than items in the middle.
Skeuomorphism: Skeuomorphism is a design technique where objects on a digital interface mimic the appearance of real-world objects to facilitate user understanding.
Social Proof: Social Proof refers to the psychological phenomenon where people are influenced by the opinions and behaviors of others. It is a design technique that displays other users' evaluations or usage status to enhance the credibility and appeal of a product or service.
Sunk Cost Effect: The Sunk Cost Effect (also known as the sunk cost fallacy) refers to the psychological tendency to invest additional resources or effort in order to justify past investments of resources or effort (such as money, time, energy, etc.).
Survey Bias: Survey Bias refers to a state where survey results do not accurately reflect the characteristics of the target population, resulting in errors or biases.
Temptation Bundling: Temptation Bundling is a design technique that makes it easier to tackle difficult tasks by pairing enjoyable activities (temptations) with unpleasant or unwanted tasks.
User Delight: User Delight refers to the moments of joy or surprise that users feel when using a product or service.
Variable Reward: Variable Reward (also known as variable reinforcement) refers to a reward system that increases human interest and continuity by having unpredictable reward sizes or frequencies.
Visual Anchor: A Visual Anchor is a design principle that uses visual prominence or emphasis in a design or layout to draw users' attention to specific elements.
Visual Hierarchy: Visual Hierarchy is a technique for arranging design elements and organizing information by establishing visual priorities.
Zeigarnik Effect: The Zeigarnik Effect refers to the phenomenon where unfinished tasks are more memorable than completed tasks.