Investigating the relationship between users' eye movements and perceived product attributes in design concept evaluation

Abstract

Eye movements as the indicators of human information processing have been studied in many domains. However, it is not clear how users’ eye movements differ among specific product attribute, while visual impression of a product plays a crucial part in distinguishing product designs. Therefore, this paper attempts to establish guidance for exploring eye tracking applications in design concept validations through two case studies. The first case study investigated the product attributes based on the theory of cognitive-affective emotions. The second investigated the product attributes for apparent functionality and affective quality. The eye movements of 105 participants were analyzed when they evaluated the products images. The results indicated that product attributes perceived in evaluation tasks can be predicted from eye movements. Moreover, compared to the new users, experienced users had a longer mean fixation duration and tended to form their impressions of the product from multiple components.