Cognitive Design

A recent article in Interacting with Computers has some interesting findings on what works when it comes to designing pleasure into our interaction with technology.  Researchers studied 500 examples of pleasurable experiences with interactive technology products (e.g. mobile phone, mp3 player, etc.) and found that stimulation, relatedness (feeling of being connected with other people), competence (feeling of being skilled and knowing what you are doing) and popularity (feeling that you are respected and liked by others and can influence them) were the four dominate factors that determined pleasure during use.  Adding features and functions that help us feel in touch,  skilled and respected are key to creating pleasurable designs.

The electric power generation and distribution system in the US is sometimes called the grid.  A major makeover is in the works that includes an overlay of computers, monitoring devices and software that will make it smarter. This so-called Smart Grid is supported by the Department of Energy (DOE) and is being developed by corporate giants such as IBM and GE. It will change everything about how we use electrical energy for the better – faster, cheaper, cleaner and more reliable.

Designers are even getting into the game. Check out Frog Design is Making the Smart Grid Sexy:

 ”Smart energy products are still in their infancy. While plenty of tools exist to help homeowners track their power use, the majority of them don’t actively help consumers  do anything about their excessive energy use. “We are in the era of awareness tech,” explains David Merkoski, Executive Creative Director at frog design. “The next era is products and services that move into behavior design.”

This is a major opportunity for cognitive designers interested in behavior change.  And it is not just in the home but also business and other organizations that are looking to save money and the planet by making a smart grid investment.

Cognitive design has a key role to play because the hardware/software infrastructure or “information management overlay” needed for the Smart Grid will evolve in stages. We are a long-way off from full automation and therefore human habit and behavior change will continue to play a staring role in creating value.  These behavior changes include for example  shutting off lights, unplugging appliances with vampire load,  putting your computer in sleep mode and adjusting temperature when you are gone or sleeping. All things we don’t have much of a personal financial incentive to do. Perhaps we can find new ways to motivate such behaviors using the “awareness tech” (mentioned above). But who is working on those designs?

Imagine you sit down to enjoy some TV and discover the remote control is across the room. Can you design a way/device to fetch the remote without getting up? If so you may want to submit your idea to the Grab the Remote Contest and try to win a 3-D TV. Be sure to check out the ideas that have already been submitted on YouTube.

According to SapientNitro we have special and happy memories of eating ice cream.  To tap those memories they created the world’s first smile-activated machine that vends ice cream. The machine Share Happy, can sense your presence, lure your closer with sounds and graphics and then, with permission, take and analyze your picture. Those with great smiles are rewarded with an ice cream bar. Facial recognition software reads your smile and also infers your gender and age.  The goal? And I quote – “… to encourage people everywhere to share life’s small moments of happiness.”

The plan to to deploy Share Happy  in high traffic areas (e.g. malls) around the world over the next 18 months.  

You cannot achieve service excellence without meeting the cognitive (intellectual and emotional) needs of your employees and customers. For a great billion dollar example of this check on the new book, Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose.

If you want to get a free taste, read the excerpt provided by Strategy+Business  (registration required). Here is my favorite part:

“At Zappos, we don’t measure call times (our longest phone call was almost six hours long!), and we don’t upsell. We just care about whether the rep goes above and beyond for every customer. We don’t have scripts because we trust our employees to use their best judgment when dealing with each and every customer. We want our reps to let their true personalities shine during each phone call so that they can develop a personal emotional connection (internally referred to as PEC) with the customer.”

From scripts, measurement of the “average handle time” and upsell to personal emotional connections.  That is a shift from meeting the cognitive needs of managers trying to control the service to the employees and customers that are experiencing the service. Bravo!

A supernormal stimulus is any stimulus that has evolved or has been engineered to elicit a stronger than normal reaction.  A puzzle or mystery that you compulsively need to solve. A game you cannot stop playing (literally). A toy so cute you just must cuddle, nurture and protect it. A food or drink so tasty that you cannot “eat just one” but will literally eat or drink it until it is gone.  A photo so sexy that….

These stimuli are created by exaggerating the features of normal stimuli that we are hard wired to respond to.  For example, oversize, and super sad eyes to elicit the instinctual response to nurture.  Or foods engineered with unnaturally high levels of fat, sugar or salt will stimulate us to eat compulsively. Why else would triple patty hamburgers with cheese and bacon sell in the millions?

This gives us one formula for creating irresistible artifacts. Understand which features and functions are wired to instinctual responses and super size them.

You can super-size by literally making them bigger or by increasing the frequency of the effect.

Artifacts with supernormal stimuli tend to be irresistible and require considerable self control on the part of the consumer. Indeed, two recent books,  Supernormal Stimuli: How Primal Urges Overran Their Evolutionary Purpose and Waistland: The R/evolutionary science behind our weight and fitness crisis, argue that such artifacts are so irresistible that supernormal stimuli may be a root cause of our health, spending and anger related problems in the US.

Both books are a must read for cognitive designers interested in behavior change.   They catalog examples of supernormal stimuli in both nature and human society and give some insights into the features that are so effective at driving deep instinctual reactions.  

Let’s try to harness supernormal stimuli to makes use healthier, happier, smarter and more financially secure.

When meeting with a prospective client I am always asked – What is cognitive design and what can it do for me? I explain that CD is dedicated to using the latest science and clinical practice to design products, services and organizations for how minds really work.  The value is to achieve lasting behavior change, product/service differentiation, improved organizational effectiveness and peak cognitive performance.  Usually the conversation quickly focuses on behavior change or designing a “think and feel” into a product or service.   More recently, I have seen interest in how individuals can achieve peak cognitive performance to drive success at work, school and life.  Little wonder, according to a recent marketing report by SharpBrains the market for brain training and cognitive health solutions grew by 35% in 2009.

The report, Transforming Brain Health with Digital Tools is filled with insights for cognitive designers but it is very pricey.   For example, the report reveals what those surveyed (1900 decision-makers and early adopters) view as effective ways to preserve and boost brain power:

“Professional and intellectual challenges were rated very effective by 61% of respondents, aerobic exercise and reading books by 42%, meditation by 38%, computerized brain training by 26%, taking prescription drugs by 13%, taking supplements by 12%, and self-medicating with drugs by 1%.”

This leaves plenty of room for innovation.  I am reporting on such innovation (large and small) in YourNextBrain!.