The Four Pleasures - enabling holistic positive user experiences

The Four Pleasures is a framework that has been widely used in design over the last 25 years. It divides human experience into four areas – physical, psychological, social and ideological. The premise behind its application is that each of these four areas should be considered when specifying user requirements. Not every product or service will deliver benefits to the user on all four of these dimensions, but each dimension should always be considered. Not doing so can lead to both unforeseen issues and user experiences (UX) that fall short of being optimal. In this paper, each of the Four Pleasures is explored in depth, with examples being given of UX issues that fall under each category. Illustrative case studies are given, and a checklist is presented to guide research and design teams about what to consider when using the framework.