Emotion-Driven Innovation

Nowadays, it is widely recognised that the term ‘innovation’ not only concerns the development of new technologies, but also emphasises the development of new meanings (Hekkert & Van Dijk, Vision in design: A guidebook for innovators. BIS publishers, 2011). Verganti (Overcrowded: Designing meaningful products in a world awash with ideas. MIT Press, 2017), in discussing the purpose of products, distinguished three types of meanings: (1) utilitarian meaning—this dimension represents the practical functionality of a product, focusing on its ability to fulfil specific tasks or solve problems; it reflects a pragmatic relationship between the user and the product; (2) symbolic meaning—Verganti suggests that products also serve as social signifiers, communicating non-verbal messages about their users; (3) emotional meaning—the emotional dimension underscores the affective relationship between users and products, reflecting how a product can trigger emotional responses. Symbolic and emotional product meanings strongly influence purchase decisions, driving success. While utility meets operational needs, emotional and symbolic aspects cater to socio-cultural desires (Dell’Era & Verganti, R., Design driven innovation: changing the rules of competition by radically innovating what things mean. Harvard Business Press, 2009, Creativity and Innovation Management, 36–48, 20, 2011).

The process creation aims to develop a prototype addressing challenges from the literature review. Phase 2 evaluates its feasibility, focusing on creating practical methods and techniques (Platts , Researching strategic management processes, 2001; Platts, International Journal of Operations & Production Management 4–17, 1993; Moultrie et al., Journal of Product Innovation Management 335–368, 2007). Focus group is a research method where a moderated group discusses a topic for 90 min to 2 h (Cooper & Schindler, Business research methods. McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2013). An exploratory survey was also conducted with a design community to understand product-emotion relationships (Gray, Doing research in the real world. Sage, 2013). The systematic literature review’s challenges are tackled in the process-creation phase (see Fig. 2.1) of the research methodology (Platts, International Journal of Operations & Production Management 4–17, 1993). The goal is to develop an industrially relevant ‘Emotion-Driven Innovation’ (E-DI) process to aid companies in envisioning emotion-centric product ideas (Koen et al., Research-Technology Management 46–55, 2001). This process includes three main activities: (1) the definition of the main objectives to be achieved by the process and its structure; (2) the elaboration of key concepts to define the language for discussing emotions in product innovation; (3) the design of methods to achieve the main objectives of the process. The three activities were conducted in collaboration with a review team through five focus groups (see Fig. 2.2). The objectives, key concepts, and methods were defined considering the professionals’ feedback

Emotion knowledge is the accurate knowledge of the phenomenon of emotions, the conditions for eliciting the emotions and their behavioural manifestations (Desmet et al., Emotion measurement. Woodhead Publishing, 2016). Emotions exist between the subject (the person experiencing the emotion) and the stimulus (the object provoking the emotion). Emotions are subjective; individuals can feel differently towards the same stimulus, including products (Desmet, Designing emotions. Delft University of Technology, Department of Industrial Design, 2002). When people are asked to express their emotional state, it’s generally easy for them to distinguish between pleasant and unpleasant experiences. However, difficulties arise when they are required to describe their emotions in a more nuanced or refined manner, as their vocabulary may seem inadequate for such detailed expression. When creating products to evoke particular emotions, it is crucial to consider how emotions are linguistically expressed, drawing on classifications from scientific literature. This book aligns with positive design’s goals, which emphasises not just product pleasure but also enhancing individual well-being (Pohlmeyer, International conference of design, user experience, and usability. Springer, 2013). Positive design aims to boost well-being through design for pleasure (momentary interactions with a product), virtue (happiness from virtuous behaviour promoted by a product), and personal significance (happiness from products aligning with one’s goals, values, and ideas) (Desmet & Pohlmeyer, Positive design: An introduction to design for subjective well-being. International Journal of Design, 2013).

Process development is Phase 3 of the process research methodology (Platts, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 4–17, 13, 1993). It consists of testing the methods, tools, and guidelines of the process created in the previous phase. In order to validate the feasibility, usability, and utility of the process and to refine it through the testing sessions, four field studies have been conducted, applying a beta test (Chiesa et al., Journal of Product Innovation Management: An International Publication of the Product Development & Management Association, 13, 105–136, 1996; Cooper & Schindler, Business research methods. McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2013). A beta test is a type of test with a series of consecutive steps, in which a group of potential users ‘try out’ a product. In this case, the product is the process to be tested (Chiesa et al., Journal of Product Innovation Management: An International Publication of the Product Development & Management Association, 13, 105–136, 1996). Figure 4.1 presents the testing logic of the process development phase. The Emotion-Driven Innovation (E-DI) process was tested by two groups of graduate design students. Those in the first group did not have any professional experience as product designers, while those in the second actively worked as professional product designers at the time of the study.

Process validation is Phase 4 of the process research methodology (see Fig. 5.1); it aims to validate the process with a wider audience (Platts, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 4–17, 1993; Moultrie et al., Journal of Product Innovation Management, 335–368, 2007). In this book, the concept of ‘wider audience’ refers to the involvement of professionals with different skills (e.g., designers, marketers, engineers, and communication specialists) that represent the typical profile of an interdisciplinary product design and development team in real design practice. The validation of the process was carried out with three field studies applying beta type test (Chiesa et al., Journal of Product Innovation Management: An International Publication of the Product Development & Management Association, 105–136, 1996; Cooper and Schindler, Business research methods. McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2013).

This chapter presents the final version of Emotion-Driven Innovation, defined as “a methodology aimed to envision emotion-focused new product ideas” (see Fig. 6.1).

In today’s rapidly changing world, the role of emotions in design has never been more important. Emotions are powerful drivers of human behaviour, and they can have a significant impact on our perception of products and services. This chapter highlights the characterising elements of Emotion-Driven Innovation (E-DI), a design approach that focuses on creating products and services that evoke positive emotions in users. E-DI is an inside-out process that starts with the designer’s own emotions. The designer then uses these emotions to generate ideas for products and services. E-DI differs from design thinking (DT), which is an outside-in process that starts with user needs. The Filter Game method is a pioneering method for aligning positive emotions with design aspirations. This method involves identifying the emotions that are most important to users and then designing products and services that will evoke those emotions that could be aligned with incremental or radical innovation principles. This chapter concludes with a qualitative analysis that connects the emotional jobs-to-be-done with award-winning products from the Red Dot Award 2023, identifying the emotional design factors that support the experience of specific emotions.