An application of multidimensional scaling in product semantics

The focus of Ergonomics in product design has been centered on the physical interaction between users and products, While product semantics appeared in the design field as one viable and valid alternative, the focus is moving toward the cognitive interaction between users and products. As product semantics spread rapidly in product design, it facts more interrogative challenges from the lack of empirical evidence to substantiate the claims of some product semanticists. Therefore, this paper presents an approach, using multidimensional scaling (MDS), that can be used to study product semantics including the connotation and denotation in product designs. This paper is the first step in testing utility of MDS as a technique for studying the cognition of product semantics. The results provide designers with an idea of how to concentrate their efforts in product semantics for consumer product design.