Consumers' emotional judgement of materials durability and disposal

The literature demonstrates that understanding relating to the use of materials in product design has been investigated from both engineering and design perspectives. However, none of these studies have explored the consumers’ concepts of the materials; rather they have focused on participants’ discussions of material samples. Consumers’ emotional reactions to the materials themselves or the consumers’ reaction to the durability of the materials have not been previously explored in depth. This research has investigated these issues and has found that consumers have very specific concepts about materials. Furthermore, the combinations of consumer concepts that are likely to elicit an emotional judgement by the consumer have also been identified. It was found that consumers are conscious of the durability of their products and the materials that they are made from. This knowledge contributes to the support of environmentally conscious design, as well as user-centered design knowledge and practice. An understanding of the emotion consumers attribute to the effect wear and aging had on the materials’ physical appearance has been achieved. This understanding of consumers’ emotional reactions to materials can contribute not only to design considerations but to knowledge regarding the promotion of prolonged product-user relationships.