IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - Summer 2013 - 78
B28: "I'm not alone in wanting my new - undeniably
inessential - toy to feel good."
Being drawn to an object on the
basis of its aesthetics has been
examined within the context of
numerous studies and disciplines.
It is frequently argued that aesthetics is "a universal desire," and that
today's products are often differentiated by style rather than their
functionality [15]. This concept is
applicable to the computing market
as well; as technological advances
have managed to satisfy, and even
exceed most user requirements, and
specifically those of the average
user [16], users expect and often
take for granted that IT artifacts,
falling within a specific features
and price range, will function and
succeed in serving them equally
well. Therefore, it may be the case
that, users with the financial capacity to obtain the particular tablet,
who are interested in light-weight
use and who value the expressive
and aesthetical characteristics of
the artifact, will admire it and
obtain it for the sake of possessing
it and enjoying the aesthetic experience it provides them with.
Bridge Between
Meaning and Emotions
As an extension of the work environment, users attribute the tablet
with an emotional value according to business-related concerns
and underline that several of its
pragmatic qualities exceed their
initial expectations. This results
in interpreting their productivity and the improved information
management as satisfaction and
relaxation, which translates as a
mixture of pleasure and calmness (deactivation), according to
the core affect theory. While the
first is self-explanatory, the second requires some clarification;
our empirical material provides
evidence that users feel a sense
of comfort and liberation when
using the iPad over other devices
78
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because it allows them to perceive
business-related processes as less
of an assignment.
Appraisal and emotional value
are directly linked to one's concerns and previously set goals.
Even though the tablet may extend
the work environment, evidence
shows that it cannot fully replace
other computationally superior
devices within such a context.
Therefore, individuals whose goal
is to do so, are faced with disappointment when assessing its
pragmatic qualities, which is a
facet of displeasure:
B13: "I gave up and borrowed laptops (one per
continent) to do all of my
posts, including when I was
covering our keynotes at
TNW Conference. (...) in the
near future at least, I will
haul my laptop on any trip
I go on where I'll be blogging. Zee is right - the thing
just isn't a work laptop
replacement."
When users approach the tablet as
a substitute for other devices, the
nature and intensity of emotions
change as well. As users use the tablet for light work, for reading, and
for home entertainment, the overall appraisal develops on a different pattern. Since within the home
environment, the tablet substitutes
the laptop, the user experience is
directly linked to a feeling of bliss
(pleasure). At the same time, we
see that mobility is not exhausted
outside such contexts; using the
tablet over the laptop allows users
to navigate spontaneously within
their private space without the hassle of undocking the device, carrying semi-heavy objects or cables.
These instances are interpreted as
a sense of freedom, which in turn
please the users.
As an entertainment station,
for multimedia or gaming, feelings of pleasure further intensify,
resulting in pleasure-activation.
Some report being astonished
(activation) that the tablet manages to support such activities,
but most importantly at how this
actually affects their behavioral
patterns. The authors' first-order
constructions reveal that, through
making sense of what takes place,
they realize that the tablet makes
a way into their inner gamer, and
leads them into appropriating their
experience. Through a reflection process, and during their
recounting, they find themselves
fascinated (pleasure) by the tablet's ease of use and intuitiveness.
Indeed, previous studies support
usability's impact on pleasure [17],
while our study offers evidence for
similar effects across senior citizens as well:
B20: "The second surprise
for me was that she instinctively swiped to the next
photo. This is an interaction she is not used to, but it
somehow came natural (or
she'd seen this on TV, she
wasn't sure). (...) I have to
say I was surprised with how
easily my mom could find her
way around different apps on
this new device, with all its
new interaction paradigms."
In short, a "futuristic" and innovative IT artifact, as perceived by the
bloggers of our study, is at the same
time assessed as natural and easy
for a wide range of demographics.
This allows its use for a number
of purposes, thus resulting into
feelings ranging from pleasureactivation to pleasure.
With regards to attachment, and
specifically our findings relating
to love to a significant other, in
most cases, several users directly
report to love the tablet, which is
on its own mapped as activationpleasure, according to core affect
theory. Second-order constructions reveal that, aside feeling
states of love, they exhibit passion
as well, which may be assessed
IEEE TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY MAGAZINE
|
SuMMEr 2013
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