Behavioral Economics
The study of psychology as it relates to the economic decision-making processes of individuals and institutions. Essential for understanding and influencing user decision-making and behavior in economic contexts.
140 topics found for:
“psychological principles”
Scarcity
A psychological principle where people place higher value on objects or opportunities that are perceived to be limited or rare. Important for understanding consumer behavior and designing marketing strategies that leverage perceived scarcity.
Gestalt Theory
A set of principles describing how the human mind organizes visual information into meaningful wholes. Crucial for designing intuitive digital interfaces and cohesive user experiences that align with natural human perception patterns.
Prägnanz
A Gestalt principle stating that people will perceive and interpret ambiguous or complex images as the simplest form(s) possible. Important for understanding visual perception and designing intuitive user interfaces.
Reification
A key aspect of Gestalt psychology describing the mind's ability to fill in gaps to create a whole object from incomplete elements. Crucial for designing creative and engaging visuals that are both pleasing to the eye and cleverly satisfying to the mind.
Ben Franklin Effect
A psychological phenomenon where a person who has done a favor for someone is more likely to do another favor for that person than if they had received a favor from them. Useful for building positive relationships and encouraging cooperative behavior in design and user interactions.
Multistability
A key aspect of Gestalt psychology that explains the tendency for ambiguous images to pop back and forth unstably between alternative interpretations in the mind. Important for understanding visual perception and designing interfaces that avoid ambiguity.
Liking Principle
A psychological principle where people are more likely to be influenced by those they like. Important for understanding social influences and improving user engagement and marketing strategies.
Environmental Psychology
The study of the interplay between individuals and their surroundings, including built environments and natural settings. Essential for designing spaces that enhance well-being and productivity.
Authority Principle
A principle that suggests people are more likely to comply with requests or follow suggestions from authority figures. Important for designing persuasive experiences and understanding user compliance.
Premack Principle
A strategy where engaging, preferred activities are used to motivate users to complete less engaging, necessary tasks. Useful for designing user interfaces and experiences that encourage desired behaviors by leveraging more enjoyable activities as rewards.
Figure-Ground
A Gestalt principle that describes the visual relationship between a figure and its background, crucial for understanding visual perception. Important for designing clear and effective visual hierarchies in user interfaces.
Similarity
A Gestalt principle that states that objects that are similar in appearance are perceived as being more related than objects that are dissimilar. Essential for creating visually cohesive and intuitive designs.
Behavioral Theory
The study of the principles that govern human behavior, including how people respond to stimuli and learn from their environment. Crucial for designing user experiences that anticipate and influence user behavior.
Prospect-Refuge
A theory in environmental psychology that suggests people prefer environments where they can see (prospect) without being seen (refuge). Useful for understanding environmental design and creating spaces that feel safe and inviting.
Behavioral Design
The application of behavioral science principles to design products that influence user behavior in a desired way. Crucial for creating products that effectively guide user behavior and improve outcomes.
Proximity
A Gestalt principle that states objects that are close to each other tend to be perceived as a group. Crucial for creating intuitive and organized visual designs that align with natural perceptual tendencies.
Closure
A Gestalt principle where the mind completes incomplete figures to form a whole, aiding in the perception of shapes and objects. Crucial for designing visual elements that are easily understood by users.
Bandwagon Effect
A psychological phenomenon where people do something primarily because others are doing it. Important for understanding social influences on user behavior and trends.
Common Region
A Gestalt principle where elements that are located within the same closed region are perceived as being grouped together. Essential for creating designs that are easily understood and visually organized.
Invariance
A key aspect of Gestalt psychology in which simple geometrical objects are recognized independent of rotation, translation, and scale. Crucial for understanding how users perceive and recognize patterns in design.
Emergence
A key aspect of Gestalt psychology where complex patterns arise out of relatively simple interactions. Crucial for understanding how users perceive complex designs and patterns.
Mere Exposure Effect
A psychological phenomenon where people develop a preference for things simply because they are familiar with them. Crucial for designing user experiences that leverage familiarity to increase user comfort and satisfaction.
Decision Theory
The study of how individuals make choices among alternatives and the principles that guide these choices. Important for designing decision-making processes and interfaces that help users make informed choices.
Common Fate
A Gestalt principle stating that elements moving in the same direction are perceived as a group or a single entity. Crucial for creating visual designs that effectively convey movement and relationships.
Focal Point
A Gestalt principle stating that elements with a distinct visual feature (e.g., a unique color, size, or shape) capture attention and are perceived as a focal point. Crucial for designing interfaces that direct attention toward visual elements that signal and enable forward progress.
Humanistic Theory
A psychological perspective that emphasizes the study of the whole person and the uniqueness of each individual, focusing on concepts such as self-actualization and personal growth. Crucial for understanding and designing experiences that cater to individual user needs and potential.
Miller’s Law
Also known as Magical Number 7 +/- 2, a theory in cognitive psychology that states the average number of objects an individual can hold in working memory is about seven. Crucial for designing user interfaces that align with human cognitive limitations.
Self-Determination Theory
A theory of motivation that emphasizes the importance of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in fostering intrinsic motivation and psychological well-being. Important for understanding how to design experiences that support user motivation and well-being.
Backfire Effect
A cognitive bias where individuals strengthen their beliefs when presented with evidence that contradicts them. Important for understanding user resistance to change and designing strategies to address and mitigate this bias.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
A psychological theory proposed by Abraham Maslow that outlines a five-tier model of human needs, ranging from basic physiological needs to self-actualization. Crucial for designing products and services that address various levels of user needs.
Connectedness
A Gestalt principle suggesting that elements are perceived as a single unit or group if they share an organizing visual cue like bullet points, or connecting lines. Essential for creating designs that organize and define related elements through grouping.
System One
A mode of thinking, derived from Dual Process Theory, that is fast, automatic, and intuitive, often relying on heuristics and immediate impressions. Important for understanding how users make quick decisions and respond to design elements instinctively, aiding in the creation of intuitive and user-friendly interfaces.
Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon
The experience of noticing something for the first time and then frequently encountering it shortly after, also known as frequency illusion. Important for understanding user perception and cognitive biases in information processing.
Attention Bias
The tendency for people's perception to be affected by their recurring thoughts at the time. Important for understanding how current thoughts influence user perception and decision-making.
Licensing Effect
A cognitive bias where people allow themselves to indulge after doing something positive, believing they have earned it. Important for understanding user behavior and designing systems that account for self-regulation.
Lag Effect
A phenomenon where learning is improved when study sessions are spaced out over time rather than crammed together. Crucial for designing educational and training programs that enhance long-term retention.
Social Proof
A psychological phenomenon where people follow the actions of others in an attempt to reflect correct behavior for a given situation. Essential for designing interfaces and experiences that leverage social influence to guide user behavior and increase trust and engagement.
Behavioral Learning Theory
The theory that all behaviors are acquired through conditioning, often used to understand and influence behavior change. Important for designing interventions that promote positive behavior change.
Self Efficacy
The belief in one's ability to succeed in specific situations or accomplish a task, influencing motivation and behavior. Crucial for designing systems that enhance user confidence and encourage goal achievement.
Anthropomorphism
The attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities, often used in design to make interfaces more relatable and engaging. Important for creating relatable and engaging designs that resonate with users.
Levels-of-Processing Effect
A theory that suggests the depth of processing (shallow to deep) affects how well information is remembered. Important for designing educational content and user interfaces that enhance memory retention.
Learning Theory
The study of how people acquire knowledge, skills, and behaviors through experience, practice, and instruction. Useful for creating educational content and interactive tutorials that enhance user learning.
Labor Illusion
A phenomenon where users perceive greater value in a service or product if they believe more effort was involved in its creation or delivery. Important for enhancing perceived value and user satisfaction.
Picture Superiority Effect
The tendency for images to be more easily remembered than words, highlighting the power of visual communication. Crucial for designing effective visual content that enhances memory retention and user engagement.
Incentive Theory
A theory of motivation that explains behavior as driven by a desire for rewards or incentives. Crucial for designing systems that effectively motivate and engage users.
BeSci
Behavioral Science (BeSci) is the study of human behavior through systematic analysis and investigation. Essential for understanding and influencing user behavior in design and product development.
Spacing Effect
A learning phenomenon where information is better retained when study sessions are spaced out over time rather than crammed in a short period. Crucial for designing educational tools and content that optimize long-term retention.
Narrative Theory
A framework that explores the structure and function of stories and how they influence human cognition and behavior. Important for creating compelling and meaningful user experiences through storytelling.
Generation Effect
A phenomenon where information is better remembered if it is generated from one's own mind rather than simply read. Useful for designing educational and interactive content that enhances memory retention.
List Length Effect
A phenomenon where the probability of recalling an item from a list depends on the length of the list. Important for understanding memory processes and designing effective information presentation.
Anchor Pricing
A pricing strategy where a high-priced option is introduced first to set a reference point, making other options seem more attractive in comparison. Important for shaping user perceptions of value and creating a benchmark for other pricing options.
Aesthetic-Usability Effect
The phenomenon where users perceive aesthetically pleasing designs as more usable, regardless of the actual usability. Important for designers to understand the impact of aesthetics on user perception and usability.
Tiny Habits
A behavior change method that encourages the adoption of small, easy-to-do habits that can lead to larger, sustainable behavior changes. Important for designing systems that support gradual and sustainable behavior change.
Testing Effect
The phenomenon where taking a test on material improves long-term retention of that material more than additional study sessions. Crucial for designing educational tools and methods that enhance learning and retention.
Illusion of Control
The tendency for people to overestimate their ability to control events. Important for understanding user behavior and designing experiences that manage expectations.
Suffix Effect
The phenomenon where people have a reduced ability to recall the last items in a list when additional, unrelated information is added at the end. Crucial for designing information presentation to optimize memory retention.
Status Quo Bias
A cognitive bias that leads individuals to prefer things to remain the same rather than change, often resisting new options or changes. Crucial for understanding resistance to change and designing strategies to overcome it among users.
State-Dependent Memory
A phenomenon where people are more likely to remember information when they are in the same state of consciousness as when they learned it. Important for understanding how context affects memory recall and designing experiences that facilitate better retention.
Behavioral Product Design
Designing products that leverage behavioral science to influence user behavior in positive ways. Crucial for creating products that are effective in shaping user behavior and improving engagement.