Web research info

**jo ellen meyers sharp h*@sbcglobal.net**

Web site owners/designers -- fyi.
jems

From
SPJ PressNotes for Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Compiled by Gene Perry
Ward Neff Intern
Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication
The University of Oklahoma

ONLINE MEDIA
Internet users judge Web sites in less than a blink

Internet users can give Web sites a thumbs up or thumbs down in less
than the blink of an eye, according to a study by Canadian
researchers. In just a brief one-twentieth of a second -- less than
half the time it takes to blink -- people make aesthetic judgments
that influence the rest of their experience with an Internet site. The
study was published in the latest issue of the Behavior and
Information Technology journal. The author said the findings had
powerful implications for the field of Web site design. "It really is
just a physiological response," Gitte Lindgaard told Reuters on
Tuesday. "So Web designers have to make sure they're not offending
users visually. If the first impression is negative, you'll probably
drive people off." In the study, researchers discovered that people
could rate the visual appeal of sites after seeing them for just
one-twentieth of a second. These judgments were not random, the
researchers found -- sites that were flashed up twice were given
similar ratings both times. They also matched the responses given by
subjects who were shown the sites for longer. But the results did not
show how to win a positive reaction from users, said Lindgaard, a
psychology professor at Carleton University in Ottawa. "When we looked
at the Web sites that we tested, there is really nothing there that
tells us what leads to dislike or to like."

Source: Kamakshi Tandon, Reuters
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=scienceNews&storyid=2006-01-17T203950Z_01_N17291661_RTRUKOC_0_US-SCIENCE-CANADA-WEBSITES.xml&rpc=22
-- 
Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp
Garden writer, author, photographer
Region III Director Garden Writers Association
Phone: (317) 251.3261
Fax: (317) 251.8545
E-mail: hoosiergardener@sbcglobal.net

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