Preference For Visual Stimuli Research Articles

The use of external stimuli as inspiration sources in design: preferences and forms of use from the perception of Portuguese designers

Designers resort to external stimuli as sources of inspiration in the creation process, using images, texts, or other media as triggers for generating new ideas. Although there are several studies on this subject, there are still few conclusions about how these stimuli work in the creation process. In this sense, this article aims to verify what types of stimuli designers prefer, at what moments of the project they usually use, and how they can contribute to the creation process. To this end, professionals from nine Portuguese design studios were interviewed, totaling 17 design professionals, most of them with significant experience in the area. The results confirmed some aspects of the theory, such as the preference for visual stimuli, and brought others, such as three-dimensional representations. In addition, other relevant aspects were found, such as the importance of inspiration sources in the communication process between the team and the client and the constant search for references in the construction of the individual repertory.

Comparing stimulus preference and response force in a conjugate preparation.

Researchers used a conjugate preparation to evaluate how response force changed based on participants' preferences for visual stimuli. First, researchers used a verbal preference assessment to evaluate each participant's preference for viewing for five object categories of visual stimuli; this process identified high preference (HP) stimuli and low preference stimuli for most participants. Thereafter, researchers exposed each participant to the five stimulus categories in a randomized order while using a force dynamometer to measure their response force to increase visual clarity of each stimulus. Results indicate the majority of participants' HP stimuli corresponded to the stimulus category for which they exerted the highest mean force. These preliminary findings suggest conjugate preparations involving response force may provide another option for measuring the relative value of some stimulus events.

Effects of Induced Arousal on Preference for Visual Complexity

Preferences for visual stimuli varying in level of complexity were obtained from 58 male undergraduate students. Subjects in an induced-arousal group showed preferences that were monotonically related to complexity level, while subjects in a non-aroused control group expressed highest preferences for intermediate levels of complexity. The data conform most closely with the psychological complexity notion of Walker (1964, 1973).