Scoping Aesthetic Experience in HCI and Product Design: A Framing of the Literature Through the Dimensions of Contrast

Aesthetic experience is a heterogeneous concept adopted in HCI and Product Design literature with various meanings and changing scopes. This paper presents a review of the literature that define, model, or frame aesthetic experience or discuss it as a type or an element of user/human experience. The review reveals three main dimensions that cause diversity regarding the ways aesthetic experience is handled in relation to user experience, which are i) the coverage of the levels of cognition, (ii) the centrality of design attributes, and (iii) the attribution of value. The paper also elaborates on and visually demonstrates the correlations among varied characterizations of the concept. It provides designers and design researchers with solid reference points to position their approach to aesthetic experience during their interventions in the research and development of new products and interactions.