MOVEMENT AND EMOTIONS IN DESIGN: DEVELOPING A FRAMEWORK TO INTEGRATE EMOTIONAL EFFECTS OF MOVEMENT EFFECTIVELY

Abstract

With the advancement in the field of Product Design, the role of movement as a design attribute has increased significantly in products. Despite this surge, designers lack the tools to evaluate the emotional impact of product movement on users. This paper establishes a framework to assess how different motion attributes in consumer products influence user emotions. The presented framework aims to assist designers in understanding, mapping, and incorporating emotional signals related to product motion during the early stages of product development. The framework thus enhances user experience and contributes to product success. A mixed-methods approach, involving an in-depth literature review and user testing, is employed to develop and validate this framework. A motion-emotion analysis tool is at the core of the framework that evaluates four fundamental elements of movement—flow, speed, space, and shape—across two types of movement: utilitarian (functional) and aesthetic (expressive).  The tool enables factorial assessment of movement in products, highlighting how each factor contributes to emotional responses within each movement category. Findings reveal that motion attributes such as speed, space, and shape tend to elicit contrasting emotional effects depending on whether the movement is utilitarian or aesthetic. Interestingly, the element of flow appears to generate consistent emotional responses across both categories. These insights offer a foundational step toward integrating emotional evaluation of motion into product design practice, paving the way for more emotionally resonant and user-centered design outcomes.