USING PSYCHOLOGY IN DESIGN PAPER ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS OVERVIEW Understanding human motivation is

USING PSYCHOLOGY IN DESIGN PAPER ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS

OVERVIEW

Understanding human motivation is a key aspect of the design process. In this assignment, you

will identify and assess a psychological principle of design in action. Noticing and evaluating the

design around you is an imperative skill and one that many people overlook. Take this

assignment to practice seeing design through the lens of human motivation. The ability to

identify and assess aspects of design and human psychology is a valuable skill to develop on

your human-centered design journey.

INSTRUCTIONS

4 Pages Minimum

o Excluding the works cited page.

Current MLA Format

The paper must include at least 4 scholarly references in addition to the course textbooks

and the Bible.

Step 1: Choose a psychological principle introduced in the course content and find a designed

product that demonstrates this principle.

Psychological Principles you may use:

Gestalt Principles

Affordances

Motivations

Mental Models

Empathy

Classical Conditioning

Operant Conditioning

Social Learning Theory

Step 2: After you have chosen a principle, spend some time researching and write about that

psychological model and appropriate theories.

Step 3: Once you have a better understanding of the principle, identify and write about a

designed product that demonstrates that psychological principle. The product should be a

designed item that has a clear purpose. Examples include, but are not limited to, mobile

application interfaces, industrial designs, navigation systems, game rulesets, visual

communication, etc. Do not use the examples given in the textbook. You can be creative with

your product of choice as long as it has a clear designed purpose and connection to a

psychological principle.

Step 4: Assess how the product uses the psychological theory within the context of the design.

Example assessment questions include but are not limited to the following. Is it a successful

design? Could the design have been approached more effectively from another psychological

DSGN 501

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perspective? How might changing the product enhance the design? Summarize your thoughts in

the context of the content you’ve learned.

Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.