Designing for visual appeal, simplicity and concreteness: the development and evaluation of design standards to manipulate icon characteristics

Good icon design is now recognized as crucial in determining user experience with mobile, PC and other applications. However, research examining icon use and processing is based on the use of existing icon sets. This leaves many questions about how new icons can be created with specific characteristics. Based on extensive design research, specific design principles were established. In an experimentally controlled study, a set of 64 icons was then developed by designers applying these design principles to create 8 versions for 8 new icon-functions, differing with regard to visual appeal (appealing vs. unappealing), simplicity (complex vs. simple) and concreteness (concrete vs. abstract icons). Once created, participants (N = 276) were asked to rate visual appeal, simplicity and concreteness of 8 icons (from the 64 versions created) in order to ascertain the extent to which the design principles were effective in creating icon sets with different characteristics. Results demonstrated that an independent manipulation of each design dimension was successful, indicating that the suggested design principles provide valuable hints for the design of icons. These findings will be used to illustrate how experimental design can shed light on building guidelines for creating effective interaction designs.