Attributes of positive user experience and the relation to product type and time

Abstract

Since user-centered design came to the forefront, user research has been treated as almost essential in product development process but utilized in limitation in spite of its importance. This is because traditional user study methods are time-consuming. Therefore, this study attempts to make an empirical interaction model, User Experience Attributes (UXA) in which how user experience with product or service interacts with product type and usage stage is shown. To achieve this goal, we firstly redefined attributes of positive user experience through literature review. Five attributes of positive user experience were created: sensory, instrumental, episodic, value and symbolic experiences. A mobile-based questionnaire was developed to figure out what kind of products are related to positive user experience, why they loved the product, and how positive user experience changed over time. 102 respondents participated in the survey. The results indicate that the importance of five attributes varied depending upon product type and product usage stage. The findings from the study provide an empirical interaction model showing the relation between positive user experiences, product type and usage stage with design practitioners. If it is considered in the product development process, it could reduce time and cost compared with traditional user study methods.