

The Design Psychologist | Psychology for UX, Product, Service, Instructional, Interior, and Game Designers
Thomas Watkins
Welcome to The Design Psychologist, a podcast where we explore the intersection of psychology and design. The show is hosted by Thomas Watkins, a design psychologist who has spent years applying behavioral science principles to the creation of digital products. We sit down with a variety of experts who apply psychology in different ways to the design of the world around us. Thomas uses his expertise to guide conversations that provide practical advice while illuminating the theory behind why designs succeed. Tune in if you are a design practitioner who seeks to understand your work on a deeper level and craft experiences that are intuitive, effective, and delightful.
Episodes
Mentioned books

12 snips
Aug 4, 2025 • 55min
From Vibes to Variables: How We’re Measuring the Unmeasurable in UX (with Bill Albert)
Bill Albert, the Principal and founder of Greenlight Idea Lab, dives into the intricacies of user experience metrics. He emphasizes the difference between usability and desirability, advocating for tools that measure emotions like frustration and delight. The podcast explores the importance of aligning design with user expectations, using physiological tools like eye-tracking. Bill also highlights the need for deeper engagement strategies and the integration of quantitative research to better understand user insights, all while ensuring product relevance and satisfaction.

4 snips
Jul 28, 2025 • 19min
The Shape of Choice: What Hick’s Law Really Reveals About Decision Time
Discover how too many choices can hamper user experience through the lens of Hick's Law. This principle reveals that more options often lead to longer decision times, creating cognitive overload. Learn practical design strategies to streamline choices and enhance usability. When should you reduce options, and when might it backfire? Gain insights on making interfaces feel faster and more intuitive by leveraging psychological principles.

10 snips
Jul 21, 2025 • 1h 2min
How to Visualize the Invisible: Metaphors, Models, and Meaning (with Stephen P. Anderson)
Stephen P. Anderson, a design leader known for the Mental Notes card deck, shares insights on transforming complex ideas into clear visuals. He discusses why visualization challenges often arise during the drawing process and whether effective illustration stems from method or talent. The conversation explores how metaphors impact understanding, and the power of visual collaboration in overcoming creative blocks. Anderson also highlights the role of embodied cognition in refining our approach to concept visualization, offering practical tips for better clarity in communication.

9 snips
Jul 14, 2025 • 17min
How Well Do Our Words Reflect Our Inside World? A psychological perspective on the limits of self-report, introspection, and understanding the human mind
Can you really trust what users say? This discussion reveals the pitfalls of self-reporting in UX research, where memory and self-perception can lead to inaccuracies. Historical perspectives illustrate the complexities of human introspection, demonstrating how people's verbal accounts often differ from their actual behaviors. Key experiments highlight the challenges of capturing true motivations and cognitive processes. Overall, it's a call for blending self-reported data with observational insights to better understand user experiences and inform design decisions.

13 snips
Jul 7, 2025 • 1h 2min
Disruptive by Design: Uncovering Game-Changing Insights (with Larry Marine)
Larry Marine, a veteran UX researcher and cognitive scientist, shares his expertise on disruptive research in design. He discusses how insights can fundamentally reshape products and markets. Marine emphasizes critical research steps that teams often overlook, which can radically alter design outcomes. He explores the evolution of personas versus knowledge profiles, advocating for a deeper understanding of user behavior. Practical advice and methodologies are provided to align UX strategies with user needs and cognitive science principles.

13 snips
Jun 30, 2025 • 25min
The Why Behind Sample Size: How Many People Do You Really Need to Test With?
How many participants do you really need for valid research? This discussion uncovers the often misunderstood world of sample sizes in user testing. From debunking the myth of testing just five users to understanding the power of participant numbers on design outcomes, insights abound. The psychological implications of too few versus just enough participants are explored, alongside methods to determine the optimal sample size based on your research goals. Gain clarity and confidence in your approach to user testing!

7 snips
Jun 23, 2025 • 1h 3min
How to Decode Conversation: A Paradigm Shift in Qualitative Insight and Human Understanding (with Indi Young)
In this episode of The Design Psychologist, we dive deep into the world of qualitative research and human-centered design with legendary UX thinker Indi Young. If you've ever felt like your user interviews only skim the surface—or if you've relied too heavily on personas—you might be missing the most powerful insights. Indi joins us to explore how deep, non-judgmental listening can revolutionize your understanding of users and, ultimately, your design outcomes. Together, we tackle questions like:What is deep listening, and why is it essential in design research? Why do traditional interviews often fail to uncover what truly drives user behavior? What are thinking styles, and how are they more effective than personas? How can designers move from interpreting behavior to understanding internal reasoning? By the end of this episode, you’ll see user research—and your role as a designer—through a completely new lens. You'll be equipped to listen more deeply, think more critically, and create more human-centered solutions.

7 snips
Jun 16, 2025 • 12min
Why It Feels Right: Affordance and the Mind’s Hidden Expectations
Ever wonder why some products feel natural while others leave you puzzled? This discussion dives into the psychology of affordances—subtle cues that guide users intuitively. Discover how design elements can either enhance or confuse user experience. Learn about Don Norman's concepts of affordances, signifiers, and anti-affordances. Real-world examples illustrate the power of creating intuitive designs that align with human expectations, equipping you with insights to design products that feel just right.

Jun 9, 2025 • 1h 2min
Designing for Risk: What Aviation and AR Reveal about Attention, Disaster, and Human Factors (with Chris Wickens)
In this episode, Thomas interviews Dr. Chris Wickens, a pioneer in cognitive engineering and human factors, and they discuss how designers can reduce errors and enhance decision-making when lives are on the line. They delve into the high-stakes world of design psychology for critical environments—think operating rooms, airplane cockpits, and military control systems. Together, they explore the real science of attention, what causes overload and confusion in high-pressure moments, and how augmented reality could revolutionize user interfaces in critical settings. Whether you're designing for surgeons, pilots, or autonomous vehicles, this episode is packed with essential takeaways from decades of research in applied cognitive science.🔍 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:What every designer should know about how human attention actually worksWhy traditional design approaches often fail in high-pressure contextsHow to reduce cognitive load and prevent life-threatening mistakesThe surprising ways augmented reality is shaping the future of human-machine interactionLessons from the deep history of human factors and applied psychology

7 snips
Jun 3, 2025 • 15min
How to Find the Next Big Idea: Deductive vs. Inductive Thinking in Product Research
Discover the intriguing world of product research methods! Learn how inductive and deductive thinking can shape the insights you gain in design. Explore a scenario involving restaurant waitstaff apps to understand when to prototype ideas versus observing real user behavior. Find out how to navigate research choices based on your design phase and circumstances. From uncovering hidden insights to making quick decisions, this conversation reveals the nuances that can truly enhance your product's impact.