Aesthetic, Functional, Symbolic, and Ergonomic Impressions: Implications for HoverboardProduct Design Form

Product design, a product’s outward appearance, associates
with successful innovation when the design
triggers buyers to develop positive impressions. The
project assessed impressions of forty respondents
to four distinctive hoverboard designs: 1) a prototypical
design, 2) an ornate design, 3) an atypical design,
and 4) a radical design. The original research
extended extant research into design impressions of
functionality, aesthetics, and symbolism to add an assessment
of ergonomic impressions. The systematic
research method entailed a literature review, qualitative
research, manipulation check, questionnaire
pretest, convenience sample, and Chi-Square method
enabling inferences with 90% confidence. A consent
form and adherence to FAU’s academic integrity
provided an ethical foundation. Results suggest that designers of hoverboards conform to the prototypical
design to increase positive functional impressions,
avoid ornate designs, and consider buyers’ skill level
and self-expression when developing atypical designs
due to respondents’ negative impressions of
safety risks and ability to control a hoverboard.