To Be Biased or Not To Be: Choosing between Design Fixation and Design Intentionality

Abstract

In the study, we explored potential design decision biases by understanding the relationship of the information being used and overconfidence of design outcomes that arise from the anchoring process in design. A total of twenty-eight industrial designers carried out a two-way between-subjects study administered by the four types of design exercise. Designers showed a strong anchoring effect when they employed “consistent knowledge-evidence” information rather than “inconsistent knowledge-evidence” information given. The empirical findings shed light on a double-edged anchoring effect in the design process, further suggesting the implications of the use of design information for educating HCI practitioners.