Reading: Norman Chapter 3

The ways in which humans respond to the world are influenced by a number of different factors. In a commercial sense designers try to play a role in this, by designing products that appeal to people on a number of different levels that make up human user experience.

The first is visceral design. This level of perception has its roots in nature and the way in which we humans are biological beings. Over the years humans have evolved to pick up emotional impulses from the biological environment they live in. Bigger and more colorful are some features that get perceived as more appealing. Even now, we still look at products in a visceral, perhaps without even noticing it. The judgment of a product at the visceral level are made regarding physical features; the look, feel and sound a product has. It is up to the designer to make a product as appealing as possible by controlling these features.

Then we have behavioral design. The four components of good behavioral design are function, understandability, usability and physical feel. A product has to have a certain function and perform well according to what it's supposed to do. In this case it is important to understand how people will use a product. This can be quite difficult from a designer's perspective. When enhancing an existing product observing users could do the trick, but if the design is an innovative this can be tricky.
The design has to make the user understand how to use the product. This can be obtained by connecting the designer's intention of use to the user's understanding through the system image; the way the product actually communicates its way of use by its physical presence. Feedback giving the user information about the effect of his/her actions is of importance in making the product understandable.
The usability of a product is the ease of which it can be put to use. A well functioning and understandable product doesn't necessarily imply that it is has a high usability. It is how well the product performs when it is actually put to use.
The physical feel of a product is important because it connects with our inner world of emotion, how we experience things. Well designed touch and feel of a product can make it more appealing.

Reflective design covers the personal meaning a user will give a certain object due to cultural aspects or the message it sends out to other people. It is not about functionality, but about satisfying the emotional need people have; one of them being the establishment of one's self-image and one's place in the world (p.87).