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A Study on the Effects of Visual Aesthetics and Usability of Web Site Design on their Performance  

Kim, Seung-Kyung (건국대학교 벤처전문기술학과)
Lee, Jae-Kwan (숭실대학교 경영학과)
Publication Information
Journal of the Korean Operations Research and Management Science Society / v.32, no.2, 2007 , pp. 17-40 More about this Journal
Abstract
Most research on web site design has focused on technological factors, while visual aesthetic factors have been considered less important. In contrast, this study focuses on visual aesthetic factors in web site design. Findings of this study can be summarized as follows : (1) The result of SPSS-factor analysis shows that there are 3 distinct factors, 'classical aesthetics', 'expressive aesthetics', and 'usability' 'Classical aesthetics' and 'expressive aesthetics' can be described by visual aesthetic design, 'Visual aesthetic design' can be distinguished from 'usability'. This conceptual confusion relating to 'usability' and 'visual aesthetic design' can be clarified by these findings. (2) As a result of multiple regression analyses, 'classical aesthetics', 'expressive aesthetics', and 'usability' have a positive influence on 'interactivity' and 'web site evaluation'. This research clarifies the concepts of 'expectations' of Grier [18] and 'engagement' of Rosen and Purinton [33] as the 'interactivity' between users and web sites. Furthermore, this research suggests a valid model with high $R^2$(interactivity, 48% : web site evaluation, 68%). (3) Empirical tests show that the differences among users in 'entry point' are related to the characteristics of web sites and the personal characteristics of users. The differences among users in terms of 'scanning time' are closely related to the attitudes and evaluation tendencies of users with respect to web sites. These findings could contribute to the 'search phase' of the Faraday model [16], enabling it to be more precise and extensible. The managerial implication of this study is that customers' preferences regarding web site designs are differences, as their preferences are based on their individual characteristics. Therefore, marketing managers should consider promotional tools on web sites that are relevant to the target market. An optimal strategy for web design could be a carefully-selected combination of factors that are relevant to the 'interactivity' and 'evaluation' of web sites. Additionally, if marketing managers want to attract more favorable attitudes and more affirmative evaluations from users, web sites should be designed so that they are understood more quickly by users. finally, this study suggests that 'good design' for web sites depends on understanding how to attain the appropriate balance between 'classical aesthetics' and 'expressive aesthetics', based on the target customer.
Keywords
Web Site Design; Visual Aesthetic Design; Usability; Performance; Interactivity; Web Site Evaluation;
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