Three-Level Theory of Cognitive Processing

Donald Norman, in his book Emotional Design: why we love (or hate) everyday things, proposed three levels by which humans holistically analyze aspects of products:

1. Visceral level: the most immediate level of processing, in which we react to visual and other sensory aspects of a product before we actually interact with it. Helps us make rapid decisions about what is good, bad, safe or dangerous. Visceral design often refers to enhancing visual appearance.

2. Behavioural level:the middle level of processing, the one that lets us manage simple, everyday behaviors. Interaction design, semantics and usability practices have primarily addressed this level of cognitive processing. Behavioral design tells us how to "behave" or "respond" to messages the products give us, for instance how to use or interact with the product in a certain way. A simple push plate on a glass door tells us that this door can be opened by pushing, not pulling.


3. Reflective design: the least immediate level of processing, which involves conscious consideration and careful reflection on past experiences. Through reflection, we are able to integrate our experiences with designed artifacts into our broader life experiences and, over time, associate meaning and value with the artifacts themselves. Reflective design is about considering how long-term relationships between products and owners can be built. Thus reflective design can tell us about the owner's taste in products, since the products that people allow others to see themselves possessing can be a reflection of what he/she wants to be in life.


Donald Norman's framework provides a method by which designers can develop a richer understanding of users and their experiences.

More on this in Donald Norman's blog:
http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/emotional_desig.html

To illustrate the effect of this theory, here's an example. Note that it is not often possible to separate out the three levels. In the real world, all are operating at the same time.

The Apple iPhone is said to function really well at all three levels. Viscerally, it's attractive. Behaviorally, it's elegant and friendly to use; though you have thousands of stuff stored in its it's not hard to find the one you want. At reflective level, it shows how the owner wants to be perceived as.