EFFECTS OF INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES ON EVALUATING TECHNOLOGICAL PRODUCTS

Individual differences influence motives for interacting with products and in turn preference for these products. Human-computer interaction (HCI) experts overlook these differences when suggesting general guidelines for a fruitful interaction. One evidence to the gap between what people want and what design experts advocate for, is evident in the complexity crisis business experts warn against. While HCI experts advocate for simplicity in interactive product designs, people want more complexity, as stated by the paradox of simplicity. In this paper we suggest that unravelling differences between individuals is crucial for technology management because the understanding of preference formation, can help in resolving paradoxes such as the paradox of simplicity. Our model explains how demographic variables (age and gender) and trait-related individual differences influence product evaluation process.