Conference article

Competing products in the market are not widely different in terms of technical levels. Instead; their major difference lies in aesthetics and design; which are also the decisive factors of purchase decisions. Therefore; understanding consumers’ aesthetic appreciation of industrial products is an important issue in the field of aesthetics and its application to consumption-related affairs. Former research indicated that people choose to stay away from sharp products and prefer curvilinear products. But what if the products under comparison are all curvilinear? Will people’s preference for the same product vary with different curvatures? Do individual differences exist between people? Through this study; it has been discovered that people indeed have a preference for curvilinear products. However; regarding preference for a product with different curvatures; it does not follow that preference increases with the continued increase of curvature. At the peak; the rising trend will start to fall down. In addition; after the peak of preference appears; there is a significant difference in the major curvature between the participants with a design background and the ordinary participants. While the ordinary participants’ preference for curvilinear products does decline; preference of the participants with a design background declines sharply. The above finding may serve as a reference for designers who may consider the application and timing of curves in designing product shapes in the future.

Curvilinear preference; aesthetics appreciation; product design