Design and Emotion

There are several possibilities for MSc research internships. Below you can find some possible topics. Depending on the interest of the student, (international) companies can be involved in the projects.

You can contact me if you are interested in one of these topics, or have ideas yourself for research projects.

1 Rich Experiences

The impact of products on user experience is complex and layered. The aim of this research project is to develop an understanding of what are rich product experiences, and which kind of emotions are involved. These can, for example, be mixed emotions, or paradoxical emotions: designed objects often do not elicit a particular single emotion, but combinations of (positive and negative) emotions.

2 Dynamic Product Emotion Index (PrEmo)

PrEmo is a non-verbal self-report instrument to measure emotional responses elicited by product design. There are several challenges in further developing this tool. This includes experiments to test validity and reliability of the instrument, and experiments to explore application possibilities of this instrument.

3 Emotions in Service Design

We can measure and understand emotional responses elicited by product design. But how does that apply to service design? Services are complex 'stimuli'; involving interactions with people and products. The aim of this project is to develop an understanding of service experiences, working towards a measurement and design method.

4 Emotional Fingerprint

What should be the intended emotional impact of a 'to be designed' product? This intended impact, or "emotional fingerprint"; should fit both with the needs of the product users and with the brand identity of the company. The aim of this project is to develop an understanding of how brand identity and user needs can be reflected in emotional fingerprints, and how this understanding can be used in design practice.

5 Emotions and the senses

Emotions are responses of users when interacting with products. These interactions touch upon the users'senses. The aim of this project is to develop an understanding of the relationship between sensorial stimulation (e.g. seeing, hearing, touching a product) and the emotional responses of the user.

6 Product character

In conceptual design it can be useful to describe the intended product character before actually starting to conceptualize product ideas. In design for emotion, a product character is developed in order to represent the emotional concerns; of the user. The aim of this project is to explore and experiment with methods for developing product characters in a structured way.

7 Emotions in Graphic Design

Graphic design may elicit different emotions than product design, and / or elicit emotions in a different way than product design. The aim of this project is to explore the similarities and differences between emotions elicited by graphic and product design.

8 Emotional development

Emotional Intelligence Quotient (EQ), describes an ability, capacity, skill or a self-perceived ability, to identify, assess, and manage the emotions of one's self, of others, and of groups. Successful social interaction requires the people involved to have the ability to express emotions and to understand and respond to emotional expressions of others. In this project we will explore the possibilities to develop an educational toy for children to practice emotional expression skills - and to develop their EQ.

9 Self Assessment Manikin +

The Self Assessment Manikin was developed as a visual scale to measure pleasure, arousal, and dominance. Since its introduction this scale has been applied in a wide variety of areas. In this project, we will investigate what application possibilites the scale has for the domain of industrial design, and if the scale should be adjusted for this domain.

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Links to related projects:

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