Abstract

This investigation has evaluated the role that vision plays in a person’s aesthetic judgment of objects and their associated emotional response. As humans, we connect with objects. We make aesthetic judgments of these objects, and this becomes part of our relationship to the product. This research has been completed through a series of participant interviews using assessment tools designed for this project. The results of this investigation are intended for use when making considerations during product and experience design. Participant interviews were conducted among persons with full sight, low vision, and total vision loss. During each interview session, participants evaluated four different objects. Participants were asked to bring to the interview session an object with which they had a strong emotional connection. The remaining three objects were provided by the investigator. Assessment tools designed for this investigation asked participants to evaluate their emotional connection and aesthetic judgment of these objects. The investigation found that there appears to be no meaningful significance in the role that vision plays in a person’s aesthetic judgment of objects across the product property groupings of size, shape, tangibility, and color. The investigation also found that there appears to be no meaningful significance in the role that vision plays in a person’s emotional response to objects across the experience dimensions of comfort, independence, and joy.