Neurodesign is an interdisciplinary field that combines neuroscience, psychology, and design to create products, spaces, and experiences that are optimized for human cognition and behavior. It uses insights from brain research to inform design decisions, aiming to enhance user engagement, satisfaction, and overall effectiveness.
Key aspects of neurodesign include:
1. Understanding cognitive processes like attention, memory, and decision-making 2. Utilizing color psychology and visual perception principles 3. Incorporating sensory elements to evoke specific emotional responses 4. Optimizing information presentation for better comprehension and recall 5. Designing intuitive user interfaces based on natural human behaviors
To use neurodesign:
1. Conduct user research to understand target audience’s cognitive patterns 2. Apply neuroscientific principles to design elements (e.g., layout, color, typography) 3. Use eye-tracking and other biometric tools to assess user engagement 4. Implement A/B testing to compare designs based on neurological responses 5. Continuously refine designs based on user feedback and neurological data
Neurodesign can be applied to various fields, including marketing, product design, architecture, and user experience design, to create more effective and engaging solutions.
Neurodesign, furnishing home and being happy
The concept of neurodesign is becoming increasingly popular. In recent years, our homes have changed: we have seen this in many ways, considering that they are even more technological, with the ability to turn lights on or off simply by clapping hands or talking to a voice assistant. The home has evolved with us, with our needs, since the dawn of time: if it used to offer shelter and shelter from the weather and predators, today it is safe harbor and reflects our tech needs. Let’s find out what neurodesign is and how to leverage its principles to design home.
What is neurodesign?
The first thing to know is that this is a relatively “recent” field. We have often talked about the colors and how they can affect our mood: just think of yellow, the color of the sun, which can give us a deep sense of joy (and True Joy is the color of 2025 for home decorating). The same applies to the materials: what does wood look like? We call it rustic, we associate it with country houses, with our grandmothers’ homes: it exudes warmth, between tradition and innovation, thanks to current working techniques.
Among the pioneers of neurodesign we find John Medina, molecular biologist and author of the book Brain Rules. This field emerged during the early 2000s: in its development, Donald A. Norman, who instead coined the concept of “user-centered design.”
We come, then, to two essential elements of neurodesign and the neuroarchitecture: colors and materials. Which we can choose precisely for the purpose of evoking feelings and emotions even in our interiors. The purpose is noble, but above all personal: to instill in us a deep sense of well-being, if not pleasure itself. Through precise study, it is possible to create not only the home of our dreams, but a home that can … generate happiness!
The emotional well-being is connected to space, in this case: we mentioned wood earlier, but the same applies to earth-inspired hues, or even green (in fact, it is no coincidence that the Urban Jungle style is increasingly chosen to furnish homes). Neurodesign makes use of a number of factors that are triggered by our brain by very wisely exploiting symmetry, simplicity, the organic and the natural, novelty but with a touch of tradition. Because, at the root of it all, is our nervous system. Which, among other things, has a job: to make us feel safe. It focuses not only on what is going on inside us, but also on the outside, sensing possible threats. And the house doesn’t have to be. In fact, it can be the home itself that makes us feel safe.
How to use neurodesign in the home?
Starting from the assumption that neurodesign serves to create a safe space in one’s home, we are the architects of everything: there are many strategies for designing the home by taking advantage of it, but one must always take into account one’s preferences and, yes, even personal experiences. This discipline ultimately applies some of the insights of neuroscience and psychology with the goal of creating a effective design, but also on measure.
A key aspect of neurodesign is to give one’s home a sense of coherence: the space should be appealing, well-structured, but also reorganized based on one’s needs. Furniture, for example, should not just be beautiful and functional, but should create a harmonious environment that can stimulate our senses. Not surprisingly, we find natural elements among the supporting elements: a green environment has many merits, starting with the positive impact on overall well-being. Plants, natural materials such as wood and stone, natural lighting. Not to be forgotten, however, the psychology of color, which we will discuss, inn this intersection between neuroscience and design.
Color is the key element of neurodesign
Thus, this technique consists of the possibility of creating a safe environment: a place where the nervous system does not feel negative signals. We are in the field between the science and aesthetics, and color is predominant in this regard, since our brains process information and respond to stimuli differently. None of us is the same, after all. This is all possible because color, basically, has a rather profound impact on our emotions and mood itself. We think of spicy colors: cinnamon, turmeric, saffron, paprika. They are shades that can awaken us from slumber and bring us into harmony with our surroundings.
We know that, for example, the nuance of the blue and of the green have a calming effect, while, on the other hand, as with the example we gave earlier, the warm tones are by definition energizing. That’s why neurodesign advises us to pay so much attention to the emotions and feelings we want to evoke and elicit in each room.
Lighting and perception
There are many principles of neurodesign, and they do not stop only at colors or the sustainable side: even shapes e functions need attention (the environment must be appealing, yes, but it must not lose its main function, which is that of practicality). Lighting itself also has an important impact on how people perceive the space, affecting mood, productivity, and the sleep cycle itself. Therefore, each room should be designed with the main function in mind and then choose the consequential factors: color, lighting, textures, shapes, stimuli. If we think of a relaxing atmosphere, we don’t lean toward strong hues: we look for muted colors that convey a deep sense of peace. It all lies in one key: in the way our brains process information.
Natural materials
We should soften the edges. Aim for natural vibes. A return to the roots, to the past. In an intrinsic way, we still remember our relationship with nature, with the land. We have not forgotten that. That’s why neurodesign relies heavily on the natural aspect: a relaxing, welcoming atmosphere can be recreated from wood, stone, plants. It’s not just a green touch, but it’s a way to connect to the most primitive part of us. When we open the front door, our brain quickly processes a piece of information: a safe space, OUR HOUSE.
