Wrapping up

The nature of experience is still a mystery despite being both universally shared and a highly personal feature of human makeup. Dedicated academic research into the science of emotions only began about three decades ago, and theories about the relationships between perception, emotions, and thoughts continue to evolve, shedding new and often surprising light on human motivations and behaviors. 

What is known for certain is that we have an innate desire to expand and repeat positive experiences and an innate urge to shorten and shun negative ones. These behavioral preferences have real consequences for companies, and provide the guiding rails for experience design. Organizations are increasingly motivated to invest in design, design is becoming an integral part of product development, designers own a central responsibility for product success, and people are more aware of the role of design in their lives, and they demand better experiences.

For some practitioners, experience design...