Design Divergence Scale

What it measures

Three items assess how different, unique, and norm-violating a consumer perceives the design of a product or object to be. The scale was developed to create contrasting design stimuli (norm-conforming vs. norm-diverging) in pretest work for a study on perceived coolness, and reflects the extent to which a design deviates from established conventions and signals autonomous choice. Researchers have used it with packaging designs (shape and colour), though the item wording is generic enough for broader design applications.

Representative items

• Study 1 pretest: n = 51; two water bottle design stimuli

Citation

Warren, C., & Campbell, M. C. (2014). What makes things cool? How autonomy influences perceived coolness. Journal of Consumer Research, 41(2), 543-563.