Influence of Personality Traits On Consumer Preferences: The Case of Office Chair Selection by Attractiveness

sustainability
Article
Influence of Personality Traits on Consumer
Preferences: The Case of Office Chair Selection
by Attractiveness
Ya-Chuan Ko 1,2 , Chi-Hung Lo 3, * and Chi-Chuan Chen 1
1 Department of Creative Product Design, Asia University, No.500, Lioufeng Rd., Wufeng,
Taichung 413, Taiwan; chrisko@asia.edu.tw (Y.-C.K.); chi@asia.edu.tw (C.-C.C.)
2 Department of Medical Research, China Medical University Hospital, China Medical University,
No. 2, Yude Road, North District, Taichung 404, Taiwan
3 Department of Industrial Design, Tunghai University, No.1727, Sec.4, Taiwan Boulevard, Xitun District,
Taichung 407, Taiwan
* Correspondence: chlo@thu.edu.tw; Tel.: +886-4-2359-0492

Received: 16 July 2018; Accepted: 9 November 2018; Published: 13 November 2018
Abstract: With increasing living standards, a modern product is required to provide emotional
links between a user’s personality and their work environment, in addition to satisfying functional
and physiological needs. Since office workers in Taiwan have average daily working hours of over
8 h, they spend lots of time on office chairs, and nowadays more companies are willing to buy
good chairs so that their employees can deliver higher efficiency under a more comfortable office
environment. After interviewing a group of experts, office chairs are classified into 7 types, and the
participants’ personality traits are classified into 4 categories. The influence of different personality
traits on the evaluation of office chairs by attractiveness is analyzed by quantification theory type I.
Design elements that can better deliver an office chair’s attractiveness are determined. The results
allow future designers to improve their designs by identifying the preferences of target users under
difference office scenarios.
Keywords: personality trait; Miryoku engineering; evaluation grid method; quantification theory
type I
1. Introduction
Under the trend of industrial transformation and economic growth, Taiwan has entered the stage
of the post-industrial society. The driving force of the economy has transformed from manufacturing
products to providing services. Industries are dominated by professional staff with knowledge
in different fields [1]. According to studies by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD), office workers have weekly working hours of at least 40 h on average. This
number is still increasing, and more companies are willing to spend more money on furniture that
could make their office environments more comfortable. They believe a good office environment can
enhance the corporate image, boost work efficiency, and reduce employee turnover rate. Moreover,
the office environment of a company is an ecosystem in which different types of people work together,
and thus it can reflect the company’s culture, human resource strategy, and the operation process.
One of the different types of office furniture on which office workers spend lots of time is the
office chairs. Office chairs affect a worker’s feeling of comfort in the office environment and can also
present different company cultures and industry attributes. The comfort and ergonomics of a chair
have been investigated by many scholars based on the theory of ergonomics. However, few studies
can be found on the relationship between chair aesthetics and user preferences. With the changing
Sustainability 2018, 10, 4183; doi:10.3390/su10114183 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability

Sustainability 2018, 10, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 19
Sustainability 2018, 10, 4183 2 of 19

have been investigated by many scholars based on the theory of ergonomics. However, few studies
can be found on the relationship between chair aesthetics and user preferences. With the changing
consumer habitsand
consumer habits andliving
livingenvironments,
environments, a users’
a users’ acceptance
acceptance of a of a product
product is affected
is affected by theirbyfeeling
their
feeling of comfort
of comfort and uniqueness,
and uniqueness, in addition
in addition to the product’s
to the product’s functionsfunctions and appearance.
and appearance. Modern Modern
office
office workers value their life quality more than ever before, and they expect more
workers value their life quality more than ever before, and they expect more from a product. According from a product.
According
to the threeto the three
levels levels of (Figure
of processing processing (Figure 1)
1) proposed byproposed
Norman [2],by Norman
the office[2], the that
chairs officearechairs that
available
are available
on the marketon canthe market
satisfy thecan satisfy theatrequirements
requirements at the
the visceral level visceral leveland
(functionality) (functionality)
the behavioral andlevel
the
behavioral level (usability). Users are gradually emphasizing the design
(usability). Users are gradually emphasizing the design taste and product appearance. In addition taste and product
appearance.
to enhancingInmanufacturing
addition to enhancing manufacturing
quality, designers quality,todesigners
are required create new areoffice
required
chairstowith
create new
styling
office chairs with styling aesthetics according to
aesthetics according to the preferences of different users.the preferences of different users.
Figure
Figure 1. The
1. The three
three levels
levels of user
of user demands.
demands.
The history
The history of ofpersonality-related
personality-relatedstudiesstudies is long
is longandandhas has
beenbeen
highlighted in recent
highlighted years.years.
in recent More
and more schools and companies are using personality tests to
More and more schools and companies are using personality tests to determine whether an determine whether an individual is
suitable for an assignment or task. From the aspect of human resource
individual is suitable for an assignment or task. From the aspect of human resource management,management, the credibility of
personality
the credibilitytestsofhas been verified
personality testsforhas
usebeen
in assessments
verified foradministered before educational
use in assessments administered training
beforeor
before building up a team.
educational training or before building up a team.
The key
The key totosuccessful
successfulproduct
product marketing
marketing on onthethe
consumer
consumer market is to is
market precisely locatelocate
to precisely the target
the
target group. In addition to satisfying physical and functional demands of the target group, onethe
group. In addition to satisfying physical and functional demands of the target group, one of of
important
the importantfactors affecting
factors the consumers’
affecting purchase
the consumers’ decisiondecision
purchase is the product
is theattractiveness. Therefore,
product attractiveness.
designers are
Therefore, required
designers torequired
are enhance to a product’s
enhance aattractiveness for the target
product’s attractiveness forgroup so that
the target the product
group so that
can be successful. This means a designer should master the preferences
the product can be successful. This means a designer should master the preferences and mental and mental perceptions of the
target group during the design process so that the product style can
perceptions of the target group during the design process so that the product style can presentpresent features and emotions
that are expected
features and emotionsby the target
that aregroup. The objective
expected of this study
by the target group.isTheto investigate
objective the attractiveness
of this study is to of
different chair designs and the differences in office workers’ preferences
investigate the attractiveness of different chair designs and the differences in office workers’ for office chairs. The research
groups are classified
preferences for officebychairs.
including
Thetheory
researchof personality
groups are traits into demographics.
classified by including theoryThe personality traits
of personality
of participants
traits from differentThe
into demographics. industries are analyzed
personality traits of so participants
that the results fromcan serve as a good
different reference
industries are
for designers when designing new office chairs that meet users’ preferences
analyzed so that the results can serve as a good reference for designers when designing new office and the expected chair
style and
chairs thatfunctions.
meet users’ From the aspectand
preferences of product
the expecteddesigns,
chairChou
style[3],
andHsiao et al. [4],
functions. From andtheKoaspect
et al. [5]
of
proposed different approaches for deconstructing a product by perception
product designs, Chou [3], Hsiao et al. [4], and Ko et al. [5] proposed different approaches for and real operations in order
to determine theaoptimal
deconstructing productdesign solution. and real operations in order to determine the optimal
by perception
designAccording
solution. to the records available in historical materials, the Chinese term ‘Yi’ (chair) can be
datedAccording
back to the to Tang dynasty.
the records Prior toin
available the Tang dynasty,
historical mostthe
materials, Chinese
Chinese satterm
on the‘Yi’ground
(chair)but
candidbe
dated back to the Tang dynasty. Prior to the Tang dynasty, most Chinese sat on the ground butwere
not sit on a chair. After Buddhism was introduced into China, Western chairs with armrests did
introduced
not sit on a into China.
chair. AfterHistorical
Buddhismimages and data indicated
was introduced into China, thatWestern
chairs became popular
chairs with during
armrests the
were
flourishing age of the Tang dynasty and became common in the Song dynasty.
introduced into China. Historical images and data indicated that chairs became popular during the A chair was viewed as
a symbol of age
flourishing power in Chinese
of the and Western
Tang dynasty cultures
and became before the
common 16thSong
in the century. Its imagery
dynasty. A chairrepresents
was viewed the
user’s seniority and authority through features such as the seat back
as a symbol of power in Chinese and Western cultures before the 16th century. Its imagery height, complexity of carvings and
patterns, and
represents thepresence
user’s or absenceand
seniority of armrests.
authority These features
through reveal the
features suchidentity
as theofseatthe chair
backuser [6].
height,
Sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability 2018,
10,
2018, 2018,
x10,
Sustainability
x FOR
10, FOR 10,
xPEER
FOR
2018,
PEERxPEER
FOR
10, PEER
x FOR
REVIEW
REVIEW REVIEW
REVIEW
PEER REVIEW 3 of
3 of of 193 of 19
19319 3 of 19

complexity
complexity complexity
complexity ofcomplexity
carvings
of carvings ofand
of carvings carvings
of
and and
carvings
patterns, andand
patterns, patterns,
patterns,
andand and
patterns,
presence andand
presence
presence presence
or or or absence
presence
absence
absence orofabsence
or
of of
absence
armrests.
armrests.of armrests.
armrests. ofThese
These These
armrests. These
featuresfeatures
featuresThesefeatures
reveal reveal reveal
features
reveal the
the the the the
reveal
identity
identity
identity identity
ofof the of
the the
identity
chair of
chair the
chair
of
user
userchair
user
the
[6]. user
chair
[6]. [6].
[6]. user [6].
During During
During theDuring
During
the the the
During
developmentthedevelopment
development development
development
the development
ofofchairs, ofof
of chairs,
chairs, chairs,
there ofthere
chairs,
there chairs,
havehavethere
have
there been have
have
there
been been havebeen
been
exchanges exchanges
exchanges beenexchanges
exchanges
ofof of chair
exchanges
chair
chair of of
styles chair
chair
stylesstyles styles
ofbetween
chair between
styles
between between
between
styles
Chinese Chinese
Chinese Chinese
Chinese
between Chinese
and and and
Western and
Western Western
Western
and cultures.
Western
cultures. cultures.
cultures. Moreover,
cultures.
Moreover, Moreover,
Moreover,
each eacheach
Moreover,
region each
region
region
eachregion
around around
around
region
the
and Western cultures. Moreover, each region around the world also has its representative chairs aroundthe
the
around
world the
world
world
also world
the also
also
hasworld also
has
its has
its
its
also its representative
representative
representative
has
representative its chairs
chairs
representative
chairs chairs
due chairs
duedue
due tototo due
to
differentdueto different
different
different
different toways
ways ways
ofof
different ofways
of
living,
ways
living,
living, ofcultures,
living, living,
of cultures,
cultures,living,
cultures, cultures,
and
andand and
folkways.
cultures,
folkways.and
folkways.
folkways. andfolkways.
Nakashima Nakashima
folkways.
Nakashima
Nakashima Nakashima
etetal. et
[7]
Nakashima
etal. al.etcompared
compared
al.[7] [7] al.
[7] [7]the
et compared
al.
compared compared
[7] the the the
differences
compared
the
the
differences
differencesdifferences
differences
between between
chairs
differences
between
between between
chairs chairs
according
between
chairs chairs
according
accordingtochairs
according according
theirtoto to their
origins
according
their
their to
and
origins their
origins
to
originserastheir
and origins
and and
origins
eras and
eraseras
proposed and eras
and
and that and
proposed
eras
proposed
proposed proposed
different
and that that
style
proposed
that thatthat
different
designs
different
different different
reflect
style style
style the
different
style style
designs
designs
designs designs
fashion
reflect reflect
reflect the reflect
culture
designs
the the
fashion
fashion the
fashion
of the fashion
reflectculture
the culture
local
culture culture
region
fashion
ofofthe of
the the
at
culture
local of
that
local the
local
of
region local
region
time.
theatlocal
region region
that
at at
that that
region at that
time. time.
time.at that time.
time.
Chairs Chairs
Chairs are Chairs
Chairs
are are
madeChairs
made areare
made
ofof made
are
made
wood,of made
wood, of
wood,
ofmetal,wood,
ofmetal,
wood,
metal, wood,
ormetal,
ormetal,ormetal,
other
other or
other
orsturdy other
other
sturdysturdy
or sturdy
other
sturdy
materials. sturdy
materials. materials.
materials.
materials.
InIn In some
materials.
some
some In In some
someIn
instances, some
instances, instances,
instances, ainstances,
instances,
a combination
combinationa combination
a combination a of of of ofof of
combination
a combination
several materials is used on different structures. For example, a chair might be composed of metalofmetal
several
several several
severalmaterials
materials severalmaterials
materials
is usedis used
materialsis
on is used
usedon
is on
different on
different
used different
on
different
structures. structures.
structures.
different
structures.
For For
structures.
example,ForFor
example, example,
For
example,
a a chair
example,
chair a a chair
might
chair
might abe might
chair
mightbe might
composedbe be
composed composed
be
composed
of of
composed
metal metal
of metal
of metal
cabriole
cabriole
cabriole cabriole
cabriole
legs
legs legs
cabriole
and legs
and
legs
and plasticand
plasticand
plastic
legs plastic
and
plastic
chair
chairchair
top chair
plastictop
chair
top andand toptop
and
chair
stile. and
stile.and
stile.
top
If If stile.
andIfapron
stile.
thethe the If
If the
apron the
apron
stile. apron
isIfapron
the
made
is is apron
made made
is is made
made
ofof of made
is
materials
materialsof
materialsmaterials
ofwith
of materials
with with
materials
awith
a hard with
a hard
hard witha hard
asurface,
hard
surface, surface,
surface,
it it it
a hard
surface, it it it
surface,
mightmight
might might
bemight
be be might
covered be
covered be
covered covered
be
covered
with
with with
covered
with
leather with
leather
leather leather
with
leather
or or or
leather
fabric
fabric orwith
orfabric
fabric
with fabric
orwith
fabric
with
soft
soft with
soft
soft
cushion
cushionsoftpads
cushion
with cushion
softpads pads
cushion
pads pads
or
or or
fillers.
pads
fillers.
ororfillers.
fillers. The fillers.
TheorThe
The
seat The
seat
fillers.
seat
seat back back
back seat
back
The back
might
seat
might
might
might might
back
be be
be bemight
made be be
made made
made of of made
of made
porous
porous of
porous porous
of materials,
porous
materials,
materials, materials,
or or or holes
materials,
holes
holes or
may
may holes
may
or
be be may
be
holes
created
created be
created
may in created
be
in
orderin order
created
order toin
to order
to
in order
facilitate
facilitate to facilitate
facilitate to facilitate
ventilation.
ventilation.
to facilitate ventilation. ventilation.
ventilation. ventilation.
AA chairA chair
chair Achair
chair
Apattern
pattern pattern
A chair pattern
pattern
is embodied
is embodiedis is
ispattern
embodied embodied
isfrom
embodied
from from
embodied from
afrom
a combination a combination
a combination
from a of
a combination
combination functions
of ofof
of functions
combination
functions functions
ofand
functions
and and
functions
and
materials.and
materials. materials.
materials.
and Different
materials.
materials.
Different
Different Different
DifferentDifferent
materials
materials materials
materials materials
materials
mightmight
might might
might
have
have have
mighthave
have
similar similar
similar havesimilar
similarfunctions,
functions,similar
functions, functions,
functions,
butbut but
functions,
the butbutthe
the
theresulting theresulting
resulting
but
resulting resulting
the
styles styles
resulting
styles styles
styles
might
might might
not might
styles
might
notbenot
be be
might
not
the not
the the
be
same. bethe
not
same. the
same.
TheThesame.
besame.
theThe Thematerials
materials
same.
The
materials
materials materials
The
that that
materials
thatare
are thatare
are
that are are
that
commonly
commonly
commonly commonly
commonly
used
used used
commonly
onon used
usedon
chairs used
chairson on
chairs
can chairs
on
chairs
can can
bebe be
chairs
cancanbe
classified be
classified classified
classified
canintobeinto
classified into
classified
five into
five into
five five
categories five
categories
into five
categories categories
categories
asas as
shown
shownas as
shown
categories shown
shown
inin in Table
asTable
Table shown
in in Table
Table
1 [6]. 1 [6]. 1 [6].
in Table 1 [6].
1 [6]. 1 [6].
Table
Table
Table1. 1. Table
1.
Materials
Table1.1.that
Materials Materials
Materials
Table that that
1. are that
are
Materials
commonly
Materials
are thatare
arecommonly
commonly
that
commonly are
used used used
on
commonly
onon
commonly
used on
onchairs.
chairs.
used
chairs.
used
chairs. on chairs.
chairs.
WoodWood
Wood
Wood
Wood WoodBamboo
Bamboo
BambooBamboo
Bamboo Bamboo
Rattan Rattan
Rattan
Rattan
Rattan Rattan
MetalMetalMetal
Metal Metal
Metal Plastic
Plastic Plastic
Plastic Plastic
Plastic
A chair’s
AAchair’s Apotential
chair’s
Apotential potential
chair’s potential attractiveness
attractiveness factors
including
factorsincludingchair
including chair
style, style,
chaircolor, color,
style,and andand
material
color, material
are
material are are
included included
included
chair’sApotential
chair’s attractiveness
attractiveness
potential factors
attractiveness factors including
including
factors chair
chair
including style,
style,
chaircolor,
color,
style, andandmaterial
color, material are
areincluded
and material included
are included
in
ininthe the in the
investigation
the ininvestigation investigation
investigation
in the of how of
investigation how
a
of howofa how of how
aof
purchase
purchase how a
purchase purchase
a decision
purchase
decision decision
is
decisiondecision is made
decision
made by
is madeisbymadeis made
by
is made
consumers. by
consumers. consumers.
consumers.
by In In
consumers.
the theIn
second
In the second the
second
In second
the
stage stage
second
of stage
the of theof
stage the
of the
the investigation a purchase by consumers. In thestagesecond of the stage of
experiment, experiment,
experiment, aexperiment,
aregression a regression
a regression analysis
aregression
regression isanalysis
analysis isout
is carried carried
is out
carried outpersonality
on theonpersonality
out the the
on personality trait
personality trait
scale scale
in
trait in to
addition
scale addition
intotheto
thethe
addition to the
to the
experiment,
the experiment, regression a analysis
analysis iscarried
carried
analysis isout on
carried onthe the
outpersonality trait
on the personality trait scale
scale inin
trait addition
addition
scale in addition to the
demographic
demographicdemographic
demographic demographic
variablesvariables
variables variables
suchsuch such
variables
as as such
as
gender
gender asand
gender
such gender
as and
and gender
age.
age. and
age.
TheTheandage.
The
purpose TheThe
purpose
age.
purpose purpose
of of of the
purpose
thethe of questionnaire
the
of the
questionnaire questionnaire
questionnaire survey
questionnaire
survey
survey is survey
to
is to to is to
issurvey is to
demographic variables such as gender and age. The purpose of the questionnaire survey is to determine
determine determine
determine the
determine the
chair chair
styles
the that styles
chairarethat
styles that
are are
preferred
that are preferred by
preferred by
people people
ofby of of different
different
people personality personality
personality
ofpersonality
different traits traits
personality traits
so so
that that
traits so that
the the
determine thechair
chair chairstyles
styles styles
that arethat
preferredarepreferred
preferred
by people byby ofpeople
people
different different
ofpersonality
different traits so that traits sosothat
designers that
can focus
designers
designers designers
designerscancan can
designers
focus
focus can
focus
onon focus
on
can on strengthening
strengthening
focus
strengthening
strengthening on strengthening
the the the
product
product thestyle
product product
the
stylestyle
product
andand style
and andthat
features
style
features
features features
and
that that
features
areare that
are are are
that
preferred
preferred preferred
preferred
by by by
preferred
thethe the
targetbytarget
target the target
by the target
on strengthening the product style and features that are preferred by the target group. The elements of
group.group.
The
group.the group.
The The
group.
elements The
elements
elements elements
The
of the of
elementsthe of
office
of the office the
office
of office
the
environment environment
environment
office
environment environment
thatthat that
are that
are are
that
considered
are considered considered
considered
are by by
considered
different
by traits by
different different
different
by different
personality personality
personality traits
personality
traits traits
traits
office environment that are considered by different personality servepersonality
as a good referencetraits for
serve serve
asas serve
a aas
good serveas
a good a good
asreference
reference reference
a goodfor for
referencethe for the
interiorinterior
fordesign
the design
interior design
ofdesign
an of an
office
of office
space.
an space. Therefore,
officeTherefore,
space. the
Therefore, the objective
objective
the of this
of this of this
objective
serve the good
interior design for
reference of anthethe interior
office interior
space. design
Therefore,ofofanan office
office
the space.
space.
objective Therefore,
ofTherefore,
this study theis objective
the objective
threefold of
asofthisthis
follows:
study study
studyis is study
threefold
threefold is as
is threefold
study threefold
is threefold
follows:
as follows: as follows:
as follows: as follows:
a. Determine the attractiveness factors of an office chair.
a. a. a. a. a.Determine
Determine
Determine
Determine thethe the
Determine the the
attractiveness
attractiveness attractiveness
factorsfactors
attractiveness ofoffactors
ananof an
factors
office
officeof an
officeof
chair. office
chair.
an
chair. chair.
office chair.
b.Investigate
b. Investigate
Investigate viavia a aquestionnaire
questionnaire survey
survey theevaluation
evaluation
the evaluation of office
office
ofchairchair chair
office attractiveness
attractivenessby users bywith
users
b.b. b.
Investigate b. via avia
Investigate a questionnaire
questionnairevia a survey
Investigate via a questionnaire survey the evaluation of office survey
questionnaire the the
survey
evaluation the of of
evaluation
office chair ofchair
officeattractiveness
chair
attractiveness
attractiveness by
attractiveness
bybyusers usersusers by users
with different
with
different personality
different personality
personality traits
traits from
traits
from the
from
the aspects
the
aspects of
aspects
of style,of
style, color,
style,
color, material,
color, texture,
material,
material, texture, and
texture,
and function.
and
function. function.
with
with different
different with different
personality
traits
traits fromfrom the traits
the aspects from
aspects ofthe
of aspects
style,
style, color, ofmaterial,
color, style,
material,color, material,
texture,
texture, andand texture,
function.
function. and function.
c. c. c. c.Investigate
c. c.Investigate
Investigate Investigate users’
Investigate
users’ users’
users’
evaluation evaluation
evaluation
evaluation
users’ ofof ofoffice
evaluation
the theof the
ofoffice
the office
office
ofchair
chair thechair chair
chair
office
style style
oror style
style ororfunctions
or functions
chair
functionsstyle functions
orthey
they they they
functions perceived
theythey
perceived
perceived perceived
and and and
perceived anddetermine
determine
determine determine
and determine
Investigate users’ evaluation the office style functions perceived and determine
the the
importancethe
the importance
importanceimportance
the of of
importance
each of
eachof each
each attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness
of
attractiveness each factor factor
attractivenessfor factor
factor
for
the for
thefor
factor
users. the
the
users.
for users.
users.
the users.
the importance of each attractiveness factor for the users.
This
This This
This
paper
paper ispaper
This
paper paper
This is
isorganizedorganized
ispaperis organized
organized
organized isinto into
into
organized
intofive five
into
fivefive fivefive
into
sections.
sections. Section
sections.
sections. sections.
Section
Section 1introduces
1 Section
Section introduces
1Section
introduces
1introduces 1the the
1 introduces
the the history
introduces
historyhistory
history of
theofthe personality-related
history
of of personality-
personality-
history
ofpersonality- of personality-
personality-
related
relatedstudies.
relatedrelated Section
studies.
related
studies.
studies. studies.
Section 2 reviews
Section
Section
studies.
Section 2Section
2 2reviews
reviews earlier
2
reviews studies
reviews
earlier
2 reviews
earlier
earlierstudies that
earlier
studies are
earlier
studies that based
studies
thatthat
studies
are that
are
arebased on Miryoku
are
based
that
based based
are
onon on
Miryokuengineering
on
Miryoku
based
Miryoku Miryoku
on and discusses
engineering
Miryoku
engineering
engineering andand the
engineering andand
engineering
and
discussesapplication
discusses discusses
discusses
the the
discusses
the of
application the
the the
application quantification
application
application
ofapplication
the
of the theory.
ofquantification
the
ofquantification
the of the
quantification Section
quantification 3
quantification
theory.
theory. describes
theory.theory.
SectionSection
theory.
Section the
3Section research
describes
3 describes
describes 3the
the methodology
3 describes
3Section the research
describes
research
research the and
themethodology
research process
methodology
research
methodology with
methodology
methodology
and and details
processand
process
and
withof the
process
with questionnaire
processwith
details
details details
with
of the of design
of
the
details the
of in
the
questionnaire this study.
questionnaire
questionnaire design
questionnaire
design in Section
design
in
this this
design 4
in
study. presents
this
study.
in this
Section a
study. case
Section
and process with details of the questionnaire design in this study. Section 4 presents a case studya casestudy.
4 study
Section
4 4 and
presents
Section
presents a 4
casethe
presents
a investigation
casea
presents
study case
studystudy
study
and
andand
the results.
the and
the and Section
the the
investigation
investigation
investigation 5 presents
investigation
results.
investigation
results.
results. Section our
results. conclusions
Section5Section
results.
Section5 presents
presents 5our
5Section from
presents
presents our the investigation.
ourour
5 conclusions
our presents
conclusions conclusions
conclusions from
fromfrom
conclusions
the
the from
the the the
investigation.
investigation.
from
investigation.
investigation. investigation.
2. 2. 2.2.Literature
Literature Literature
2. Literature
2.Review Review
Review
Literature
Review Review Review
Literature
Earlier
Earlier Earlierstudies
studiesstudies that
that are related
areto related totoMiryoku
Miryoku engineering,
engineering, evaluation
evaluation grid
grid method
method (EGM),
(EGM), and
andand
Earlier
Earlierstudies
studies thatthat
Earlier
that are are
studies
arerelatedrelated
that
related are
to to Miryoku
related
Miryoku
Miryoku engineering,
toengineering,
Miryoku
engineering, evaluation
engineering,
evaluation
evaluation grid
gridgrid
evaluation
methodmethod
method grid
(EGM),(EGM),
method
(EGM), andand
and (EGM),
personality
personality traits
traits
personality
traits are traits
are are
are
traits
reviewed reviewed
reviewed
reviewed
are
in in in
reviewed
this this
in
this
study study
this
study
in study
this
for for forforintegration
integration
integration
study
integration forinto into
the into
into
the
integration the proposed
the proposed
proposed
into
proposed the applications.
applications.
applications.
proposed
applications. The The
TheThe
applications.
The
personality traits are reviewed in this study for integration into the proposed applications. The
Miryoku Miryoku
Miryoku
Miryoku engineering
Miryoku
engineering engineering
engineering engineering
approach approach
approach
approach
was was was
approach proposed
waswas proposed
proposed
proposed byby by by Japanese
by scholars.
Japanese
Japanese
proposed
Japanese by scholars.
scholars.
scholars.
Japanese
The The The principal
TheThe principal
principal
scholars.
principal part partpart
part
of
principal of Miryoku
of Miryoku
Miryoku
part
ofofMiryoku of Miryoku
Miryoku engineering approach was proposed Japanese scholars. The principal part Miryoku
engineering
engineering toiscreate
istopreference-based
tocreate
iscreatepreference-based
preference-based designs
designs for
forconsumers
consumers in order
toin order toato
create a communication
engineering
engineering
engineering is
isengineering
toto
is create
create preference-based
to create
preference-based designsdesigns
preference-based
designs for for consumers
designs
consumers
for consumers forinin in order
consumers
order
order to order
in
create
to create
create a create a communication
a communication
to create
communication
communicationa communication
interface between a designer and his/her customers. Miryoku (attractiveness) is defined by the
Japanese Kojien Dictionary as “attraction to human minds” and it is equipped with “must-have
uniqueness”. The attractiveness could be defined as having “attraction”, “charm”, or “dazzling
effect”. It deals with the capability of dazzling, attracting, inducing, infecting, and dynamic effects for
conquering people’s minds. It is comprehensive, presenting the influence of social functions rather
than a single action force that is generated locally [8].
Attractiveness is one of the important driving forces for boosting human civilization, promoting
social developments, activating life, and getting people motivated. It is closely linked to people’s
feelings and carries important implications and motivations in life [9]. Miryoku engineering is one of
the branches of Kansei engineering, which is a type of ergonomic study of the relationship between
mental perception and actual objects. Its objective is to quantify human emotion by engineering
approaches. The term Miryoku engineering was proposed by Japanese scholars J. Sanui and M. Inui in
1985 by referring to the concept that was proposed by clinical psychologist G. A. Kelly [10] in his book
“The Psychology of Personal Constructs”. This subject has been included in the Japan Society of Kansei
Engineering since 1998. Its theory is based on several fundamental models and designs. Japanese
scholar M. Ujigawa [11] and several other scholars initiated the study of Miryoku Engineering in
1991 with an attempt to create products, spatial techniques, and learning techniques with regard to
attractiveness. A summary of individual perceptions and concepts is created in order to determine
the optimal design concept that complies with consumer preferences. Therefore, this design concept
is under the premise of consumer preferences. The subjective preference of a consumer comes from
his/her value judgment system which includes various scopes such as sensory reception, mental
decision-making, sociological influences, and art evaluation. During the process of creating a new
product, questions regarding the product’s attractiveness will arise, as shown in Table 2.
Table 2. The fundamental theory of Miryoku engineering.
Area Peculiarity Concept, Theory & Method

Definition Inclusive recognition
Recognition Pattern recognition
Basic theories
Learning Fashion, character goods
Value system Reference groups
Depth interview Evaluation grid method
Structure identification
Composite effect Paired comparison
Modeling
Parameter identification Cluster analysis Regression analysis
Segmentation forecasting Simulation Conjoint analysis
Scenario making
Planning On-site thinking
Cognitive Map
Design
Design strategy Positioning
User participation
Materializing Prototype creation
Source: Ujigawa [11].
Evaluation grid method (EGM) originated from psychological studies and deals with summarizing
the concepts that are perceived by individuals into various charts, as shown in Figure 2. This approach
aims to summarize the individual characteristics of the target object by identifying its similarities to
or differences from other objects. This is realized by interviewing individuals and by collecting the
results of pairwise comparisons between subjects A and B [10]. Sanui [12] contributed to the further
development of this approach. He proposed a two-step investigation, first by asking the participants
to answer whether they like a target object or not, and second by clarifying what the participants
meant regarding the associated criteria with supplementary questions. The structural network of the
attractiveness factors for consumer preferences can be materialized accordingly.
Figure 2. The
Figure process
2. The of EGM
process operations.
of EGM operations.
Among the therelevant

relevantstudies,
studies,thethe
EGM EGMhas been proven
has been to be an
proven toeffective approach approach
be an effective for analyzingfor
a product’s attractiveness factors with a theoretical basis. Consumers’ perception
analyzing a product’s attractiveness factors with a theoretical basis. Consumers’ perception of a of a product’s
attractiveness
product’s can be determined
attractiveness by in-depth interviews.
can be determined by in-depthVarious types Various
interviews. of stimulitypes
are provided
of stimuli under
are
the scope of
provided the target
under topic in
the scope oforder to generate
the target topic apparent
in orderdifferences
to generate in apparent
the participants’ perceptions.
differences in the
By comparingperceptions.
participants’ the participants’ preferences,
By comparing each
the participant’s
participants’ original perception
preferences, of the topicoriginal
each participant’s can be
obtained. After
perception of thethat, thecan
topic participants are guided
be obtained. to further
After that, analyze their
the participants areperception
guided toand to transform
further analyze
concepts into
their perception andtwoto categories,
transform their including concrete
concepts into tworeasons and abstract
categories, perceptions.
including concreteThe ultimate
reasons and
goal is toperceptions.
abstract understand The the participants’
ultimate goalreal is toideas [8].
understand the participants’ real ideas [8].
“personality” is derived from Latin. It originally
The term “personality” originally referred
referred to the masks that are worn
by drama actors. This is something that other people can see, and it represents the owner’s personal
characteristics in other’s eyes. Some Some other scholars define personality as a person’s behaviors.
The theory
theoryofofpersonality
personality trait originated
trait fromfrom
originated the study by G. W.
the study by Allport
G. W. in 1950s. in
Allport He1950s.
proposedHe
that the personality trait is the basis of a person’s personality and is the fundamental
proposed that the personality trait is the basis of a person’s personality and is the fundamental composition
of the mentalof
composition structure.
the mental It represents
structure.the stable temperament
It represents the stable and characteristics
temperament and of a person thatofare
characteristics a
developed
person on aare
that physical basis. Allport
developed [13] viewed
on a physical personality
basis. Allporttraits
[13]as viewed
compositions of the personality
personality traits as
structure, withofeach
compositions the type of personality
personality traitwith
structure, having
eachitstype
ownoflocation in thetrait
personality personality structure.
having its There
own location
arethe
in different types ofstructure.
personality relationship between
There these personality
are different types of traits, and theybetween
relationship can be classified into three
these personality
categories
traits, and as
theyfollows.
can be classified into three categories as follows.
a. Cardinal
Cardinaltrait:
trait:The
The personality
personalitytrait that
trait cancan
that best represent
best a person’s
represent characteristics.
a person’s It isItthe
characteristics. is
most dominant
the most trait intrait
dominant the in
personality trait structure,
the personality and it affects
trait structure, and itevery aspect
affects everyofaspect
the person’s
of the
behaviors.
person’s behaviors.
b.
b. Central
Centraltrait:
trait:The
Thecore
corecomponent
componentofofa aperson’s
person’stemperament.
temperament.
c. Secondary trait: This indicates a person’s preference or tendency of responses, such as
preferring clothes of certain colors or enjoying cleaning up the room.
c. Secondary trait: This indicates a person’s preference or tendency of responses, such as preferring
clothes of certain colors or enjoying cleaning up the room.
d. This section may be divided by subheadings. It should provide a concise and precise description
of the experimental results, their interpretation, and the experimental conclusions that can
be drawn.
A personality trait could be one person’s cardinal trait but another’s central trait. It could be just a
secondary trait in the third person. Typically, the central trait is used to depict a person’s temperament.
Other scholars proposed that the personality trait is the unique temperament that a person reveals
when adapting to new people, things, and their environments [14]. This unique temperament inside a
person is called the personality trait. It is a person’s enduring and unique behavior pattern [14,15].
Eysenck [16] classified personality traits into two categories which include (1) introversion/
extroversion and (2) neuroticism/stability. The classification of personality traits that is proposed by L.
R. Goldberg [17] includes five categories, and his model has been examined and accepted by follow-up
scholars as the five-factors model of personality traits. These five categories include openness to new
experiences, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism [18]. In 1992, Goldberg
proposed a personality scale that is composed of 35 bipolar clusters and 100 trait adjectives for assessing
personality traits. The 100 trait adjectives can be classified into those five factors, with each factor contains
20 adjectives. The reliability of this model is verified with the alpha values in the range of 0.82–0.97 [17,19].
Personality traits are often used for investigating consumers’ purchasing behaviors, job aptitude tests,
and future developments of students. As users have different views on products, companies are required
to enhance the value added to a product’s own functions. Product differentiation should be realized
in order to enhance competitiveness. Lin [20] investigated the relationship between personality traits
and color preferences for groups of college students that are classified by their personality traits, values,
zodiac signs, and blood types. Kuo [21] classified products into symbolic, integral, and practical types for
investigating the preferences of users with different personality traits. Shen [22] investigated a group of
people over 18 years old for their preference of product colors and their differences in making purchase
decisions. Chang [23] classified guesthouses into different groups and investigated people’s preference for
guesthouses by a questionnaire survey. His results indicated the difference in the selection of guesthouses
by consumers of different personality traits. Wu [24] carried out a case study of the relationship between
the design philosophy, personality trait, and the consumers’ purchase preference via a questionnaire survey.
Terng [25] investigated the correlation between the color preference of potential female wedding guests
of different personality traits and their behavioral intentions. Hsueh [26] investigated the relationship
between personality trait, color preference, and shape preference by studying the purses used by females
in order to understand the personality traits’ influence on shape and color preference.
The result of the literature review indicated a number of relevant studies on consumers’
personality traits and their preferences when making a selection. There are also studies on the
correlation between an office worker’s personality trait and his/her job performance. It is known from
these studies that various scales of personality traits have been widely used for demographic studies
or corporate hiring applications. The results of these studies also verified the influence of personality
traits on people’s behaviors and selection preferences. Personality traits are classified into several
categories including openness to new experiences, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and neuroticism
for further investigation in this study.
The quantification theory type I is used in this study for quantifying data. This approach is
proposed by Japanese scholar C. Hayashi for the analysis of how a qualitative variable affects the
target quantity by multiple regressions. It allows researchers to build a prediction model for analysis
and is often used for the study of Kansei engineering. The goal is to determine the relationship
between Kansei vocabularies and form elements. There are six types of quantification theory, and the
quantification theory type I is a type of qualitative regression approach. The influence and weight of
each vocabulary on each design parameter, such as style or color elements, can be determined by the
analysis of quantification theory type I [27].
A quantification theory is used to carry out the multiple regression analysis, principal
component analysis, and discriminant analysis of data, including yes or no answers. The six
A quantification theory is used to carry out the multiple regression analysis, principal component
quantification theories include type I, II, III, IV, V, and VI. The first four types from type I to type IV
analysis, and discriminant analysis of data, including yes or no answers. The six quantification theories
are commonly used. Among them, type I deals with regression analysis, type II deals with
include type I, II, III, IV, V, and VI. The first four types from type I to type IV are commonly used.
discriminant analysis, and type III could belong to either the principal component analysis or the
Among them, type I deals with regression analysis, type II deals with discriminant analysis, and type
factor analysis, depending on its application scenario. The purpose of quantification theory type I is
III could belong to either the principal component analysis or the factor analysis, depending on its
to determine the approximate functional relationship between a specific variable (i.e., the target
application scenario. The purpose of quantification theory type I is to determine the approximate
variable) and other qualitative items. The intensity of the influence of each qualitative item on the
functional relationship between a specific variable (i.e., the target variable) and other qualitative items.
target variable can be determined by the multiple regression analysis. Each qualitative item is
The intensity of the influence of each qualitative item on the target variable can be determined by
composed of several categories. It is also assumed that all of the test specimens are required, but
the multiple regression analysis. Each qualitative item is composed of several categories. It is also
only one is selected. This approach can be used to determine the regression equations and to predict
assumed that all of the test specimens are required, but only one is selected. This approach can be used
the variance of data [28].
to determine the regression equations and to predict the variance of data [28].
3.3.Research
ResearchMethodology
Methodologyand andProcess
Process
The research process in this
The research process in this studystudy is divided
is divided intointo
twotwo stages.
stages. The approaches
The approaches that
that are areduring
used used
during the investigation
the investigation includeinclude
EGM and EGM and quantification
quantification theory
theory type type
I. The I. The
first step first
is to step is to interview
interview experts in
experts in the relevant fields by EGM for their opinion on the attractiveness
the relevant fields by EGM for their opinion on the attractiveness factors of office chairs. factors of office chairs.
After that,
After that, a questionnaire survey is carried out on a group of participants for their evaluation
a questionnaire survey is carried out on a group of participants for their evaluation of the attractiveness of the
attractiveness of andesign
of an office chair’s office elements.
chair’s design elements.
The results The results
are analyzed by are analyzed by the
the quantification quantification
theory type I. The
theory type I. The procedures of these two stages
procedures of these two stages are shown in Figure 3. are shown in Figure 3.
Figure 3. Flowchart
Figure of the
3. Flowchart research
of the process.
research process.
Experts who are familiar with office chair designs are invited for the interview in this study.
Table 3 indicates the criteria for qualifying those experts including furniture designers, furniture
marketing personnel, and end users.
Table 3. Criteria for qualifying experts.
Background Criteria for Selection

Five years of experience or above with practical furniture designs or
Furniture designer
interior designs with real experience of designing or planning office chairs.
Marketing or sales people with more than five years of experience in the
Furniture marketing personnel
furniture or architecture industries.
Office worker with more than five years of work experience and 80% of
End user
work hours in the office or studio.
Based on the above criteria, 9 experts are invited for the interview in this study. Their background
information is shown in Table 4 and they are classified into three categories which include furniture
designer, furniture marketing personnel, and end user.
Table 4. Background information of interviewed experts.
Years of
Index Background Organization Job Title
Experience
A1 Busen Design Co. Ltd. Owner 10
A2 Furniture designer Your Love Creative Design Co. Ltd. Product designer 8
A3 AI Group Co. Ltd. Interior designer 5
B1 Bon Maison International Co. Ltd. Salesperson 8
Furniture marketing
B2 Chun Yong Wood Co. Ltd. Marketing personnel 6
personnel
B3 Sun-Friend Co. Ltd. Owner 30
C1 Der Hawk International Co. Ltd. Salesperson 6
C2 Eastern Broadcasting Company Journalist 12
End user
Administration
C3 Saint Victoria Education Co. Ltd. 8
personnel
The evaluation grid diagram that is obtained by interviewing Expert B1 is shown in Figure 4. By
summarizing the results of interviewing these 9 experts, a team of industrial designers applied the
KJ Method to the items, including the abstract reasons, original assessments, and concrete reasons
for further classification. The responses of approximate semantic meanings or participants of similar
properties are classified into the same category. The items are renamed and the reference count of each
factor is recorded.
The experiment in this study is carried out by qualitative interviews in the first stage and
quantitative questionnaire surveys in the second stage. Experts are interviewed in the first stage by
EGM for collecting the adjectives of an office chair’s attractiveness according to the experts’ opinions.
These adjectives are included in the questionnaire with a scale of personality traits for a survey in order
to determine the correlation between these adjectives and the design elements. The evaluation of office
chairs by the participants of different personality traits is also analyzed. A total of 190 questionnaire
copies were issued for the quantitative survey. Among them, 159 copies are online questionnaires
and the other 31 copies are printed questionnaires. The survey was effective from 18 November 2016
to 2 December 2016. A total of 159 online copies and 30 printed copies were returned. After being
reviewed and checked, the number of effective online copies is 92 and that of effective printed copies
is 30. A total of 122 copies serve as the samples of this study.
Figure 4. Evaluation grid diagram by Expert B1.

Figure 4. Evaluation grid diagram by Expert B1.
3.1. Design of Questionnaire Contents
3.1. Design of Questionnaire Contents
The questionnaire contents include vocabularies of concrete design elements and abstract office
chairThe questionnaire
design contents
items. Moreover, the include vocabularies
end users are classifiedofinto
concrete design
different elements
categories fromand
the abstract
aspects
office chair design items. Moreover, the end users are classified into different categories
of demographics and personality traits for the consideration of enhancing value and contribution from the
of
aspects of
this study. demographics and personality traits for the consideration of enhancing value and
contribution of this study.
3.1.1. Demographic Variables
3.1.1. Demographic Variables
a.
a. Gender
Gender
Participants are classified
Participants are into male
classified into male or
or female
female by
by gender
gender and
and number
number 1
1 for
for male
male and
and number
number 22
for female.
for female.
b.
b. AgeAge
The
The age
age brackets
brackets ofof this
this study
study follow the definition
follow the by the
definition by the Directorate General of
Directorate General of Budget,
Budget,
Accounting
Accounting and Statistics, Executive Yuan, Taiwan. The first age bracket is 21–30 years old during
and Statistics, Executive Yuan, Taiwan. The first age bracket is 21–30 years old during
which most people’s first job starts, followed by 31–40, 41–50, and 51–65 which is the mandatory
which most people’s first job starts, followed by 31–40, 41–50, and 51–65 which is the mandatory age
for retirement.
age for retirement.
c.
c. Years
Yearsofofwork
workexperience
experience
The
The years
years of
of work
work experience
experience also
also follow the definition
follow the definition by
by the
the Directorate General of
Directorate General of Budget,
Budget,
Accounting and Statistics, Executive Yuan, Taiwan as follows. The first segment is the
Accounting and Statistics, Executive Yuan, Taiwan as follows. The first segment is the freshmanfreshman group
with
group with less than two years of experience, followed by 2–4 years, 4–6 years during which office
less than two years of experience, followed by 2–4 years, 4–6 years during which most most
workers stabilize,
office workers and 6 years
stabilize, and 6 and above
years for thefor
and above lastthe
segment.
last segment.
d.
d. Place
Placeofofresidence
residence
The
The classification
classification of
of the
the place
place of
of residence
residence follows
follows the
the definition
definition by
by the
the National
National Development
Development
Council which divides Taiwan into four geographical areas including Northern, Central, Southern,
Council which divides Taiwan into four geographical areas including Northern, Central, Southern,
and Eastern regions. Two more options including offshore islands and others are included due to
the consideration that the participants might be from offshore islands or are non-ROC citizens.
and Eastern regions. Two more options including offshore islands and others are included due to the
consideration that the participants might be from offshore islands or are non-ROC citizens.
e. Occupation
According to the classification by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics,
Executive Yuan, there are 9 types of occupation. They include (1) agriculture, forestry, fishing and
animal husbandry, (2) manufacturing, (3) government employees, (4) commerce/finance/insurance,
(5) service industry, (6) food service industry, (7) broadcasting media industry, (8) arts and design
industry, and (9) medical treatment and healthcare.
f. Monthly income
According to the classification by the Directorate General of Budget, the segments include
NTD20,000 or below, NTD20,001–29,999, NTD30,000–39,999, NTD40,000–49,999, and NTD50,000
or above.
3.1.2. Personality Trait

In this study, the participants are classified into groups by their personality traits. A questionnaire
survey was carried out by the personality trait questions and the attractiveness factors that were
collected in the previous stage. Product features including material or color are also included for the
questionnaire survey. A regression analysis is carried out to determine the preferences of different
groups for office chairs.
The personality trait scale that was proposed by Wang [18] by referring to the personality trait
scale by Shen [22] and the emotion scales by Chang [14] is used in this study. The construct validity is
examined and the questions are slashed or adjusted according to the updated personality trait scale
for the experiment. During the process of factor analysis, Wang [18] proposed that the openness and
extraversion factors can be merged into one factor since the four-factor analysis is more stable than
five-factor analysis. The variance explained for these four factors is 49.52%, and the coefficient of
overall internal consistency is 0.83. There are a total of 33 questions which include outgoing and
open (13 questions), neuroticism (7 questions), agreeableness (6 questions), and conscientiousness
(7 questions).
3.1.3. Ranking of Preferences

The participants are asked to rank their preference of the 7 items at the abstract level as shown in
Box 1 according to their own experience and feelings. A score of 1 is used for the most favorite, with 7
for the least favorite, and so forth.
Box 1. Seven attractiveness factors to be ranked by respondents.
For an office chair, please rank these 7 attractiveness factors according to your own feeling. (1 for the most
attractive and so forth.)
Slim, graceful, and easy-to-store
Simple, agile, and elegant
Comfortable, warm, and sturdy
Highly applicable
Special and unique
Vibrant and young
With the sense of design and texture
3.1.4. Questions for the Quantification Theory Type I

The convergent item at the abstract level serves as the main title of the quantification theory type I.
There are 7 categories, and the first portion is the ranking of the importance at the middle level. This
further corresponds to the single-choice questions for the vocabularies at the concrete level in the
second portion as shown in Table 5.
Table 5. Questions to be answered by respondents in the second portion of questionnaire.
For an office chair, which of the followings can better present the characteristics of ”slim, graceful, and easy-to-store”?
(Mark your answer to show how much a factor is highlighted with a large number indicating more importance.)
5 4 3 2 1
Style # # # # #
Color # # # # #
Material # # # # #
Texture # # # # #
Function # # # # #
For an office chair, which of the features should be equipped in order to present “slim, graceful, and easy-to-store”?
(Mark one answer within each category.)
A. Style C. Material E. Function
# Chair style with simplicity # Wood material
# Small caster diameter # Thin metal cabriole leg
# Cabriole legs and splat integrally # Wood with different material
formed # Leather material
# Brand conception # Fabric material
B. Color # Comfortable seat back
# Soft and comfortable cushion
# Dark tone # Ergonomics-compliant
# Light tone # With casters
# Vegetation color scheme # Comfortable armrest
# All black
# Single color scheme
D. Texture
# Dark red with dark gray
# Matching colors with contrast
# Two contrasting colors
# Matching colors with contrast
# Wood colors with warm colors
When carrying out the analysis by quantification theory type I, the personality traits are classified
into five categories which include openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and
neuroticism. The objective is to determine the difference between the participants’ perceptions of office
chairs with different personality traits.
4. Discussion
The experiment in this study is carried out in two stages which include the qualitative interview
and quantization questionnaire. The interview in Stage 1 is carried out by the evaluation grid method.
The attractiveness vocabularies proposed by the experts for an office chair are summarized. Based
on the vocabularies and the personality trait scale, a questionnaire survey is carried out to verify the
correlation between the attractiveness vocabularies and the design elements. The goal is to further
understand the difference in the evaluation of office chairs by the groups of participants with different
personality traits. A total of 190 questionnaire copies are dispatched for the quantization questionnaire.
Among them, there are a total of 159 copies of the online questionnaire and 31 copies of the printed
questionnaire. The questionnaire copies were dispatched between 18th November 2016 and 2nd
December 2016. A total of 159 online copies and 30 printed copies were returned. After a thorough
examination and screening, the count of valid online questionnaire copies was 92 and that of printed
copies was 30. Therefore, the total number of valid specimens in this study is 122, and the composition
is described as follows.
a. Gender
Among these 122 respondents, 68 of them are male and this accounts for 56%. On the other hand,
54 of them are female and this accounts for 44% as shown in Figure 5.
valid specimens in this study is 122, and the composition is described as follows.
Among these 122 respondents, 68 of them are male and this accounts for 56%. On the other
a. Gender
hand, 54 of them are female and this accounts for 44% as shown in Figure 5.
Among these 122 respondents, 68 of them are male and this accounts for 56%. On the other
hand, 54 of them are female and this accounts for 44% as shown in Figure 5.
Female,
54 Male, 68
Female,
54 Male, 68
Figure 5. Percentages of respondents by gender.

b. Age
b. There
Age are four age brackets from 21–65 years old. The number of respondents between the ages
ofb.21–30Age
is 34,are
There that
fourof age
respondents between
brackets from 21–6531–40
yearsisold.
32, The
that number
of respondents betweenbetween
of respondents 41–50 isthe
27,ages
andof
that of respondents
21–30There
is 34,are
thatfourbetween 51–65
of respondents is 29
age bracketsbetween as shown
31–40
from 21–65 in
is 32,
years Figure
that
old. 6.
of respondents
The between 41–50
number of respondents is 27, the
between andages
that
respondents
of 21–30 between
is 34, that 51–65 is 29between
of respondents as shown in Figure
31–40 is 32, 6.
that of respondents between 41–50 is 27, and
that of respondents between 51–65 is 29 as shown in Figure 6.
51-65 21-30
years, 29 years, 34
51-65 21-30
years, 29 years, 34
41-50
years, 27
31-40
41-50
years, 32
years, 27
31-40
Figure 6. Percentages of respondents by age.
years, 32
c. c. Years
Yearsof ofwork
workexperience
experience
ByBy referring
referring toto
thethe data
data from
from 1111
1111 Job
Job Bank,
Bank, thethe years
years ofof work
work experience
experience is is divided
divided into
into four
four
c. Years
segments of
whichwork experience
include less than 2 years, 2–4 years, 4–6 years, and more than
segments which include less than 2 years, 2–4 years, 4–6 years, and more than 6 years. Among the 6 years. Among the
respondents,2323ofofthem
respondents, themareare less
less than 22 years, 21
21ofofthem with 2–4 years of of
work experience, 17 of
17them
SustainabilityBy referring
2018, 10, x FORto theREVIEW
PEER data from 1111years,
Job Bank, them
the with
years of 2–4 years
work work
experience isexperience,
divided
13 into
of
of 19 four
with
them 4–6 years,
with 4–6 and
years, 61 of
and 61them with
of than more
them2with than
more 6 years of work experience as shown in Figure 7.
segments which include less years, 2–4than
years, 6 years of work
4–6 years, andexperience
more thanas6 shown in Figure
years. Among the
7. respondents, 23 of them are less than 2 years, 21 of them with 2–4 years of work experience, 17 of
Less than 2
them with 4–6 years, and 61 of them with more than 6 years of work experience as shown in Figure
7. years, 23
More than
6 years, 61
2-4 years,
21
4-6 years,
17
Figure 7. Percentages of respondents by years of work experience.
d. Place of residence
The classification of the place of residence follows the definition by the National Development
Council, which divides Taiwan into four geographical areas including Northern, Central, Southern,
and Eastern regions. Since there is a limitation on the online respondents’ region, an option is
included into the questionnaire so that respondents who do not live in Taiwan can also participate.
After reviewing the returned questionnaire, the number of correspondents who live in Northern
4-6 years,
17

and Eastern regions. Since there is a limitation on the online respondents’ region, an option is
and Eastern regions. Since there is a limitation on the online respondents’ region, an option is included
included into the questionnaire so that respondents who do not live in Taiwan can also participate.
into the questionnaire so that respondents who do not live in Taiwan can also participate. After
After reviewing the returned questionnaire, the number of correspondents who live in Northern
reviewing the returned questionnaire, the number of correspondents who live in Northern Taiwan
Taiwan is 37, 39 of them live in central Taiwan, 60 of them live in Southern Taiwan, and four of
is 37, 39 of them live in central Taiwan, 60 of them live in Southern Taiwan, and four of them live in
them live in Eastern Taiwan as shown in Figure 8. No respondent chooses the option of Others.
Eastern Taiwan as shown in Figure 8. No respondent chooses the option of Others.
Eastern Northern
Taiwan, 4 Taiwan, 37
Southern
Taiwan, 60
Central
Taiwan, 39
Figure 8. Percentages of respondents by the place of residence.
Figure 8. Percentages of respondents by the place of residence.
e.e. Occupation
Occupation
By referring
By referring to tothe
theclassification
classificationby the
by Directorate General
the Directorate of Budget,
General Accounting
of Budget, and Statistics,
Accounting and
ExecutiveExecutive
Statistics, Yuan, the respondents are classifiedare
Yuan, the respondents into nine categories.
classified Thecategories.
into nine numbers of respondents
The numbers are of
three in the are
respondents agriculture, forestry,
three in the fishingforestry,
agriculture, and animal husbandry
fishing industry,
and animal 13 in industry,
husbandry the manufacturing
13 in the
industry, 35 as industry,
manufacturing the government employees,
35 as the government six in the commerce/finance/insurance
employees, industry, 28 in
six in the commerce/finance/insurance
the service
industry, 28 industry, six inindustry,
in the service the foodsix service
in theindustry, threeindustry,
food service in the broadcasting
three in themedia industry,
broadcasting 25 in
media
the arts and design industry, and three in the medical treatment and healthcare
industry, 25 in the arts and design industry, and three in the medical treatment and healthcare industry as shown in
Figure 9.
industry as shown in Figure 9.
Agriculture,
Medical treatment
Manufacturing
Arts and design forestry, fishing
and healthcare, 3
industry, 13
industry, 25 and animal
husbandry, 3
Broadcasting Government
media industry, 3 employees, 35
Food
service Commerce/finance
industry, 6 Service industry, 28 /insurance, 6
FigureFigure 9. Percentages
9. Percentages of respondents
of respondents byby occupation.
occupation.
f. f.Monthly
Monthly income
income
According
According to to
thethestatistics
statisticsby
by 1111 Job
Job Bank,
Bank,the monthly
the monthlyincome of the
income of respondents is classified
the respondents is
into five categories which are respectively NTD20,000 or below, NTD20,001–29,999,
classified into five categories which are respectively NTD20,000 or below, NTD20,001–29,999, NTD30,000–39,999,
NTD40,000–49,999,
NTD30,000–39,999, and NTD50,000 and
NTD40,000–49,999, or above. Amongorthe
NTD50,000 respondents,
above. Among 24theofrespondents,
them have a 24
monthly
of
them have a monthly income of NTD20,000 or below, 16 of them in the range of NTD20,001–29,999,
16 of them in the range of NTD30,000–39,999, 13 of them in the range of NTD40,000–49,999, and 54
of them have a monthly income of NTD50,000 or above as shown in Figure 10.
f. Monthly income
According to the statistics by 1111 Job Bank, the monthly income of the respondents is
classified into five categories which are respectively NTD20,000 or below, NTD20,001–29,999,
Sustainability 2018, 10, 4183
NTD30,000–39,999, NTD40,000–49,999, and NTD50,000 or above. Among the respondents, 1424of of 19
them have a monthly income of NTD20,000 or below, 16 of them in the range of NTD20,001–29,999,
16 of them
income in the range
of NTD20,000 orof NTD30,000–39,999,
below, 13range
16 of them in the of them in the range of NTD40,000–49,999,
of NTD20,001–29,999, 16 of them in theand 54
range
of them have a monthly income of NTD50,000 or above as shown in Figure 10.
of NTD30,000–39,999, 13 of them in the range of NTD40,000–49,999, and 54 of them have a monthly
income of NTD50,000 or above as shown in Figure 10.
NTD20,000
or below, 24
NTD50,000
NTD20,001-
or above, 54
29,999, 16
NTD40,000- NTD30,000-
49999, 13 39999, 16
Figure 10. Percentages of respondents by month income.

Figure 10. Percentages of respondents by month income.
g. Personality
g. Personalitytrait
trait
The classification
The classification by by personality
personality trait
trait in
in this
this study
study follows
follows thethe approach
approach that
that isis proposed
proposed by by
Wang [18] in her study of the reliability and validity of five major types
Wang [18] in her study of the reliability and validity of five major types of personality traits. The of personality traits. The
types of
types of extraversion
extraversionand andopenness
opennessare aremerged
merged intointo
thethesamesame category.
category. Therefore,
Therefore, therethere
are aare
totala
of four categories which include extraversion and openness, neuroticism, agreeableness, and
total of four categories which include extraversion and openness, neuroticism, agreeableness, and
conscientiousness. The score of each respondent’s personality trait is assessed
conscientiousness. The score of each respondent’s personality trait is assessed by a five-point scale. by a five-point scale.
Since the
Since the personality
personality trait trait of
of each
each respondent
respondent is is still
still unknown
unknown duringduring thethe process
process of of the
the
questionnaire
questionnaire survey, the questionnaire results need to be analyzed in order to determine each
survey, the questionnaire results need to be analyzed in order to determine each
respondent’s type
respondent’s type of personality trait. To
Toensure a asufficient amount of specimens forfor
thethe
analysis by
The results ofof
thepersonality
analysis astrait.
shown ensure
in Figure sufficient
11 indicated amount
that ofthespecimens
respondent counts analysis
of the
quantification
by quantification theory type
theory type I, the most apparent personality trait of each respondent is recorded. If
extraversion and openness andI, the
the neuroticism
most apparent typespersonality trait offor
are insufficient each
therespondent
quantification is recorded.
analysis.
the
If number
the number of a specific type of personality trait is not sufficient for analysis, the personality trait of
Therefore, the of a specific type
personality traitsofofpersonality trait is for
the top 32 scores not the
sufficient for analysis,
respondents theextraversion
with the personality traitand
the
of top 32 scores
the top and
32 scores for all respondents
for all respondents is selected as the representative personality trait. As aAs result, the
openness the neuroticism types areisselected
selectedasasthetherepresentative
representativepersonality
personalitytraits.
trait. a result,
personality
the personality trait of a respondent
trait of aby respondent might belong
might to
belong two different
to two categories.
After the analysis quantification theory type I ondifferent
these 122categories.
questionnaire copies, the design
The results of the analysis as shown in Figure 11 indicated that the respondent counts of the
elements of slim, graceful, and easy-to-store are summarized in Tables 5 and 6. The categories
extraversion and openness and the neuroticism types are insufficient for the quantification analysis.
include five design elements which are chair style, color, material, texture, and function. Several
Therefore, the personality traits of the top 32 scores for the respondents with the extraversion and
sub-categories can be derived from each of the design elements.
openness and the neuroticism types are selected as the representative personality traits.
Figure 11. Respondent count for each type of personality trait.

Figure 11. Respondent count for each type of personality trait.
After the analysis by quantification theory type I on these 122 questionnaire copies, the design
The of
elements items
slim,are rankedand
graceful, in easy-to-store
Table 7 according to the partial
are summarized in Boxcoefficient
1 and Tableof 5.correlation. The
The categories
independent
include variables
five design of eachwhich
elements item are
are chair
ranked in Table
style, color, 8material,
according to their
texture, andscores. The Several
function. plus or
minus sign indicates
sub-categories whetherfrom
can be derived theyeach
are of
positively correlated
the design elements.or negatively correlated. A negative
sign indicates the item is more suitable. The overall ranking is determined by summing up the
scores in the sub-categories for each of the variables.
Table 7. Ranking of an office chair’s design elements of slim, graceful, and easy-to-store.
Item Independent Variable Sub-Category Ranking Partial Coefficient of Correlation

The items are ranked in Table 6 according to the partial coefficient of correlation. The independent
variables of each item are ranked in Table 7 according to their scores. The plus or minus sign indicates
whether they are positively correlated or negatively correlated. A negative sign indicates the item is
more suitable. The overall ranking is determined by summing up the scores in the sub-categories for
each of the variables.
Table 6. Ranking of an office chair’s design elements of slim, graceful, and easy-to-store.
Item Independent Variable Sub-Category Ranking Partial Coefficient of Correlation

X1 Style 4 2 0.276
X2 Color 9 3 0.266
X3 Material 5 4 0.193
X4 Texture 4 1 0.309
X5 Function 5 5 0.095
Multiple correlation coefficient 0.472
Coefficient of determination 0.223
Table 7. Ranking of sub-category scores of slim, graceful, and easy-to-store for samples.
Independent Individual Overall

Item Sub-Category Item Score
Variable Ranking Ranking
X1 Style Chair style with simplicity 1.338 1 2
Small caster diameter −0.555 4
Cabriole legs and splat integrally formed 1.157 2 3
Brand conception −0.334 3
X2 Color Dark tone 0.266 6 10
Light tone 0.426 4 9
Vegetation color scheme 2.884 1 1
All black 0.271 5
Single color scheme −0.679 9
Gray and red color scheme 1.113 2 4
Matching colors with contrast −0.598 8
Two contrasting colors 1.046 3 5
Wood colors with warm colors −0.198 7
X3 Material Wood material 0.193 2
Thin metal cabriole leg −0.635 5
Wood with different material 0.689 1 7
Leather material −0.166 3
Fabric material −0.518 4
X4 Texture Wooden legs with metal support and decorations −0.451 2
Delicate metal processing 0.883 1 6
Fine carpentry skill −0.789 3
Bundled decorations included −2.748 4
X5 Function Comfortable seat back −0.287 4
Soft and comfortable cushion −0.055 3
Ergonomics-compliant 0.138 2
With casters −0.434 5
Comfortable armrest 0.574 1 8
The scores of the design elements under the “slim, graceful, and easy-to-store” category indicated
that the top three design elements are texture, style, and color. Moreover, the top three sub-category
items that present positive effects are, respectively, vegetation color scheme, chair style with simplicity,
and cabriole legs and splat integral form. By reviewing the opinions of the participants, it was found
in this study that an office chair is viewed as slim, graceful, and easy-to-store only if it is composed of
the following elements:
(1) Texture: The partial coefficient of correlation of an office chair’s texture has the highest score.
Among the sub-category items of texture, delicate metal processing has the highest score. It can
be reasoned that the delicate metallic texture is a critical factor that makes people feel that an
office chair is slim, graceful, and easy-to-store.
(2) Style: Among the style category, chair style with simplicity has the highest score. In our opinion,
a slim, graceful, and easy-to-store office chair should present a style design with simplified
and streamlined features, but without much decoration or complex style. Cabriole legs and
splat integral form have the second highest score among the items within the style category,
and presents positive correlation. It can be reasoned that the chair streamline is brief with
cabriole legs and a splat integral form. This makes a chair more lightweight and portable when
moving around.
(3) Color: The partial coefficient of correlation of an office chair’s color is ranked third. Among
the sub-category items of colors, vegetation color scheme has the highest score, and it is also
the highest among all sub-category items. Therefore, it can be reasoned that in order to create
a design of a slim, graceful, and easy-to-store office chair, the vegetation color scheme will be
considered first since it delivers a mild and stain-resistant image. It is not as heavy as black or as
other dark color schemes.
By analyzing the data of the slim, graceful, and easy-to-store category for different personality
traits as shown in Table 8, it was found that the design element of color presents a highly positive
correlation with the perception of slim, graceful, and easy-to-store for all of the participants. For
participants with agreeableness and neuroticism personality traits, the item that can best present the
Sustainability
of2018,
Sustainability
Sustainability
perception 10, x10,
2018,
2018,
slim, 10,
FORx xFOR
10, FORPEER
xPEER
FOR
graceful, PEERREVIEW
REVIEW
REVIEW
PEER
and REVIEW
easy-to-store is the dark tone. 1717
17 of of
17of19
19 of1919
Table
TableTable
Table Table
8. 9.9.9.
Differences
Differences
9. Differences
Differences thein
in in
Differences the the
inin the perception
perception
perception
the
perception of of
perception
of a slim, a of a aslim,
slim,
of aslim,
graceful, graceful,
graceful,
slim,
and andand
graceful,
graceful, and easy-to-store
easy-to-store
easy-to-store
and
easy-to-store byoffice
office
chairoffice
easy-to-store
office chair
chair
office by by
chair
chair
participants by
by
participants
participants
participants of
participantsofofdifferent
different
different
of personality
personality
personality
different
of different personality traits. traits.
traits.
traits.
personality traits.
Openness
Openness
Openness
Openness
Openness Neuroticism
Neuroticism
Neuroticism
Neuroticism
Neuroticism Agreeableness
Agreeableness
Agreeableness
Agreeableness
Agreeableness Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness
Soft
SoftSoft
Soft
and and
Soft and
and comfortable
comfortable
comfortable
comfortable
and comfortable
Vegetation
Vegetation
Vegetation color
color
Vegetation color
color Bundled
Bundled
Bundled
Bundled decorations
decorations
decorations
decorations
Bundled decorations Comfortable armrest
Vegetation color cushion
cushion
cushion
cushion
cushion included Comfortable
Comfortable
Comfortable armrest
armrest
armrest
Comfortable armrest
Small
Small
Small caster
caster
Small
caster
Small diameter
caster
caster Dark tone included
included
included
included
Thin metal cabriole leg
Gray and red color
With casters DarkDark
Dark
tone
Darktone
tone
tone
Delicate metal Gray
Gray
Gray andand
Grayand
red red
and
scheme redcolor
color
red color
color
diameter
diameter
diameter
diameter Thin
ThinThinmetal
metal
metal
Thin cabriole
cabriole
metal
Dark legleg
cabriole
cabriole
tone leg
leg
Delicate
Delicate
Delicate metal
metal
metal
Delicate metal
processing scheme
scheme
schemescheme
WithWith
With casters
casters
casters
With casters Dark
Dark Dark
tone
Darktone
tone
tone
processing
processing
processing
processing
For participants with the openness personality trait, an office chair with a vegetation color scheme
5.5.Conclusions
Conclusions
5. Conclusions
5. Conclusions
and small caster diameters can best present the perception of slim, graceful, and easy-to-store. For
participants
ViaVia Via with
interviews
interviews
interviews
Via the
andand
interviews neuroticism
and experiments,
experiments,
experiments,
and personality
experiments, thethe the
the trait, the
attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness required
factors
factors factors ofof
of office
factors factors
office
ofoffice
chairs
office for
chairs
chairsa and
and
chairs slim,
and
the
and thegraceful,
the differences
differences
differences
the and
differences in ininin
easy-to-store
thethethe evaluation
evaluation
evaluation
the evaluationoffice
of an chair
ofofof
anan
office
an include
office
office chair’s
chair’s
office a
chair’s
chair’s soft and
attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness comfortable
as as asas
rated rated
rated
ratedcushion,
by by by
usersusers
by users dark
with
users with
with tone,
differentand
different
different
with delicate
personality
personality
personality
different personality metal
traitstraits
traits
traits
processing.
are are
are investigated
investigated
are Forin
investigated
investigated participants
ininin
this this
this study.
study.
this with
study.
With
study. Withthe
With
regards
With agreeableness
regards
regards to the
regards tototo
thethe
demands
the personality
demands
demands
demands trait,
ofofof
increasing anquality
increasing
of increasing increasing office
qualitychair
quality
of life,
quality is
ofofof viewed
life,
life,
the the
life, the
design
the as
design
design
design
slim,
of ofofof
office graceful,
office
office chairs
chairs
office chairsand
can
chairs easy-to-store
can
can
becanbe improved
bebe improved
improved improved when
by byby by it hasto
referring
referring
referring referringbundled
tototo
the thethe
results
thedecorations
results thatthat
results
results that
are
that included,
are
are obtained
obtained
are obtained
obtainedinthin
this metal
ininin
this
this
study.
this cabriole
study. legs,
study.
study.
and Theis in
The dark
The tone.
attractiveness
attractiveness
The For participants
attractiveness
factors factorsof of
factors anwith
of an
of an the
office
office
an conscientiousness
office
chair
office chair areare
chair
chair are
are personality
determined
determined
determineddetermined by by by
theby trait,
thethe
EGM
the aEGM
EGM
EGMslim,
andand graceful,
and
by
and byby
in-depth
by and
in-depth
in-depth
in-depth
easy-to-store
interviews.
interviews.
interviews.
interviews.The office
TheThe chair
correlation
correlation
The is required
correlation
correlation between
betweenbetween
betweento have
various
various various adesign
various comfortable
design
design elements
design armrest
elements
elements
elementssuch and
such
such asshould
style,
asas
as style,
such style, be
color,
style, inmaterial,
color,
color, gray
color, and/or
material,
material, texture,
material, red
texture,
texture,
texture,
color
and
and and scheme.
function
andfunction
function are
are
are also
function also
arealso determined.
alsodetermined.
determined.
determined. A
A total total
AAtotalof
total of
seven seven
ofofseven abstract
abstract
seven abstract
abstract categories
categories
categories
categories and
and and 27and 27 concrete
2727concrete
concrete design
design
concrete designitems
design items
items
items
areareare summarized.
summarized.
summarized.
are summarized. By By By analyzing
analyzing
analyzing
By analyzing thethe the samples,
samples,
the samples,
samples, thethe the concrete
concrete
the concrete
concrete criteria
criteria andand
criteria
criteria andandattractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness evaluation
evaluation
evaluation
evaluation of ofofof
5. these
Conclusions
these these
seven
these seven
seven categories
categories
categories
seven areare
categories are
also also
are also
alsoclarified.
clarified.
clarified.
clarified.
The
ViaThe
TheThe evaluation
evaluation
evaluation
interviews evaluationof of
and ofof
officeoffice
office
office
experiments, chairs’
chairs’chairs’
chairs’
the attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness
attractiveness by by
by factors
users
byusers
users
with
users
of with
with
office different
different
different
with personality
personality
personality
different
chairs and thepersonality traits
differences traits in isisis
traits
is
traits
theanalyzed
analyzed
analyzedanalyzed
evaluationby by by interviews
by
ofinterviews
interviews with
interviews
an office with
with
with
chair’s experts
expertsexpertsandand
experts and
attractivenessaand a aquestionnaire
aquestionnaire
questionnaire
questionnaire
as rated by survey.
survey. survey.
users The
survey.
with The
The difference
difference
difference
The difference
different ininin
in the the
personality the evaluation
evaluation
evaluation
the evaluation
traits of ofofof
are
office
officeoffice
office
investigated chairs
chairs chairs
for
chairs for
in thisfor different
for different
different
different
study. Withpersonality
personality
personality
regardstraits
personality totraits
traits
the isisalso
isdemands
traitsalso isalso investigated.
investigated.
investigated.
also ofinvestigated.
increasing However,
However,
However, However,
quality since since
since
of life, there
since
thethereareare
there
there
design aareofa aoffice
limited
limited
are alimited
limited
number
numbernumber
chairs number
canof beofofof
imagesimages
imagesforfor
images
improved for
thosethose
for
by those
those
referringoffice
office officetochairs
chairs
office chairs
the that
chairs that
results that
are
thatareare available
available
that are available
are on on
available
obtained on
theonthe
in the market,
market,
the
this market,
market,
study.somesome
some design
design
some design elements
elements
elements
design elements
might
might notnot
might
might
The not
have
nothave
have
have
attractiveness a acorresponding
acorresponding
a corresponding
corresponding
factors of an chairchair
chair
office image
chair image
image
chair for
imageare for
for
the forthe
the evaluation.
evaluation.
evaluation.
determinedthe by In
evaluation. In
thethis
EGM this
InIn this
case,case,
this
and byparticipants
case, participants
participants
case, participants
in-depth areare are
asked
interviews. asked
are asked
asked
to toto
choose
The choose
choose a arepresentative
representative
a representative
to choose
correlation abetween
representative image
image
imageimage
various depending
depending
depending
design depending
elements on
on theon on thethe importance
importance
importance
such style,of
theasimportance ofof
those
color, those
those design
design
ofmaterial,
those design elements.
elements.
elements.
design
texture, A A
A person’s
elements.
and person’s
person’s
A person’s
function
personality
personality
personality
personality trait trait
traitmight
might
traitmight reflect
reflect
might reflect his/her
his/her
reflect his/her occupation
occupation
occupation
his/her occupation andand and
job
and job
job
role.role.
job role.
The
role.The
The requirements
requirements
requirements
The requirements forfor for
an an
for an office
office
an office
chair
office chair
chair
chair
could
could alsoalso
could
could also
be
also bebebedifferent
different
different depending
depending
depending
different depending on on on
theon the
the
work
the work
work environment
environment
environment
work environment or or ororcompany
company company
company orientation.
orientation.
orientation.
orientation. AfterAfter
Afterthethe
After the
the
target
targettarget application
application
application
target application scenario
scenario
scenario isisconfirmed,
isconfirmed,
is confirmed,
scenario confirmed, a afurniture
a furnitureafurniture
furniture designer
designer designer ororor
interior
or interior
designer interior designer
designer
interior designer isisadvised
is advised
designer isadvised tototo
to refer
advised refer
refer
refer
tototo
to the the
the proposed
proposed
proposed
the proposed approach
approach
approach approach ininin
in this this
this
study
thisstudy
studyso so
study soso
that that
that
he/she
that he/she
he/she cancan
he/she can determine
determine
determine
can determine thethe the optimal
optimal
the optimal design
design
optimal design ofofof
of office
design office
office
office
chairs
chairs by by
chairs
chairs by considering
considering
considering
by consideringthethe the personality
personality
personality
the personality traits
traits traits
of the
traits ofofof
the
the
target
thetarget
target
users.
target users.
users.
users.
are also determined. A total of seven abstract categories and 27 concrete design items are summarized.
By analyzing the samples, the concrete criteria and attractiveness evaluation of these seven categories
are also clarified.
The evaluation of office chairs’ attractiveness by users with different personality traits is analyzed
by interviews with experts and a questionnaire survey. The difference in the evaluation of office
chairs for different personality traits is also investigated. However, since there are a limited number
of images for those office chairs that are available on the market, some design elements might not
have a corresponding chair image for the evaluation. In this case, participants are asked to choose a
representative image depending on the importance of those design elements. A person’s personality
trait might reflect his/her occupation and job role. The requirements for an office chair could also be
different depending on the work environment or company orientation. After the target application
scenario is confirmed, a furniture designer or interior designer is advised to refer to the proposed
approach in this study so that he/she can determine the optimal design of office chairs by considering
the personality traits of the target users.
At the current stage of this study, we inevitably encountered challenges and limitations during
the research process and the results are still incomplete in several aspects. There are still other design
factors for an office chair design and these factors could be further investigated. In order to improve the
incompleteness of this study, researchers are advised to carry out follow-up studies from the several
aspects which are described as follows:
a. Since the personality traits of the respondents are unknown during the stage of dispatching
the questionnaire, the divide between the results of the returned questionnaires of the different
groups is large. Due to the limited amount of resource and time, the most representative
personality traits are selected from the overall results in order to meet the minimum required
amount of specimens. However, data conflicts are occasionally observed due to the insufficient
amount of test specimens so that analysis by the quantification theory type I failed to generate a
confirmed result.
b. With the limited resource and time, the questionnaire survey was conducted with a combination
of online questionnaire copies and some printed copies. The returned online questionnaire
copies indicated inferior quality to the printed copies. Since we are not able to control the
identity of the respondents or the circumstances of when they filled in the questionnaire, the
obtained results are affected by these uncertain factors accordingly.
c. After the vocabularies obtained by the evaluation grid method were converged, some of the
renamed abstract vocabularies were too vague for the respondents to generate a correct image
relating to the vocabularies, and they did not focus on the right definition, so the results of the
quantification theory type I are affected.
d. Since the respondents are limited to the Taiwan region, this study focuses on the perception of
office chair designs for Taiwanese people. However, some office chairs of Western styles are
quite different from the Eastern styles that are collected for this study. Most of the offices in
Taiwan still offer old-style swivel office chairs, which could present very different perceptions to
the respondents as compared to new Western style chairs.
Since most of the respondents are experts from the furniture-related industry, they use some
vocabularies which are different from what common consumers use. Therefore, this leads to minor
differences between their perceptions when filling in the questionnaire. Follow-up studies are advised
to interview more experts from this industry and end users in order to determine the difference
between their perceptions of office chairs.
Author Contributions: All authors contributed to the paper. C.-H.L. collected and organized data, C.-C.C. wrote
the manuscript with the supervision from Y.-C.K., and C.-H.L. acted as a corresponding author.
Funding: This work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Republic of China under
grant MOST 107-2221-E-029-021.
Acknowledgments: The authors would like to express their sincere gratitude to Hsin-Hui Lin for her assistance
in collecting the data for this study.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
References
1. Bell, D. The Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism; Heinemann: London, UK, 1976.
2. Norman, D.A. Emotional Design: Why We Love (or Hate) Everyday Things; Basic Books: New York, NY,
USA, 2004.
3. Chou, J.R. An Empirical Study of User Experience on Touch Mice. Eurasia J. Math. Sci. Technol. Educ. 2016,
12, 2875–2885. [CrossRef]
4. Hsiao, S.W.; Lin, H.H.; Ko, Y.C. Application of Grey Relational Analysis to Decision-Making during Product
Development. EURASIA J. Math. Sci. Technol. Educ. 2017, 13, 2581–2600. [CrossRef]
5. Ko, Y.C.; Lo, C.H.; Hsiao, S.W. Interface Design Optimization by an Improved Operating Model for College
Students. EURASIA J. Math. Sci. Technol. Educ. 2017, 13, 2601–2625. [CrossRef]
6. Li, J.H. Chair Engineering and Design; Luiho Press: Taipei, Taiwan, 1979.
7. Nakashima, C. The New Theory and Basics of the Modern Chair. Available online: https://honto.jp/
netstore/pd-book_02231091.html (accessed on 23 May 2018).
8. Ma, M.Y.; Houng, C.Y.; Tseng, L.T. The Attractiveness Evaluation of Cultural Creative Industry for Sightseeing
Festival in Taiwan; Report of Research Project with Subsidy from National Science Council, Executive Yuan;
Executive Yuan: Taipei, Taiwan, 2005.
9. Tseng, L.T. The Attractiveness Evaluation of Cultural Creative Industry in Taiwan—A Case study of
Ilen Children’s Folklore and Folkgame Festival. In Proceedings of the 12th Chinese Institute of Design
Symposium, Taipei, Taiwan, 27 May 2007; pp. 268–274.
10. Kelly, G.A. The Psychology of Personal Constructs. 2 Volumes. Available online: https:
//books.google.com.hk/books/about/The_Psychology_of_Personal_Constructs_Vo.html?id=
o99DjgEACAAJ&source=kp_book_description&redir_esc=y (accessed on 23 May 2018).
11. Ujigawa, M. The evolution of preference-based design. Res. Dev. Inst. 2000, 46, 1–10.
12. Sanui, J. Visualization of users’ requirements: Introduction of the Evaluation Grid Method. In Proceedings
of the 3rd Design & Decision Support Systems in Architecture & Urban Planning Conference, Spa, Belgium,
18–21 August 1996; Volume 1, pp. 365–374.
13. Allport, G.W. Prejudice; Association Press: New York City, NY, USA, 1950.
14. Chang, C.H. Psychology; Tung Hua Book Co., Ltd.: Taipei, Taiwan, 1992.
15. Pervin, L.A. Personality: Theory and Research, 6th ed.; John Wiley & Sons: Oxford, UK, 1993.
16. Eysenck, H.J.; Eysenck, S.B. On the unitary nature of extraversion. Acta Psychol. 1967, 26, 383–390. [CrossRef]
17. Goldberg, L.R. The development of markers of the Big-Five factor structure. Psychol. Assess. 1992, 4, 26–42.
[CrossRef]
18. Wang, H.M. A Study of the Reliability and Validity of Scale of Five Personality Traits in Chinese; Meiho University:
Pingtung County, Taiwan, 2010.
19. Goldberg, L.R. Analyses of Digman’s child-personality data: Derivation of big-five factor scores from each
of six samples. J. Personal. 2001, 69, 709–743. [CrossRef]
20. Lin, C.Y. A Study on the Relationship between Color Preference and Personal Traits of College Students in
Taiwan. Master’s Thesis, Institute of Applied Arts, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan, 2000.
21. Kuo, L.C. The Effects of Personality Trait and Brand Personality on Brand Preference. Master’s Thesis,
Institute of Applied Arts, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan, 2002.
22. Shen, K.L. A Study of Interaction among the Color Preference in Different Types of Personality and
Consuming Styles. Master’s Thesis, Department of Visual Design, National Kaohsiung Normal University,
Kaohsiung, Taiwan, 2008.
23. Chang, Y.T. The Study on Relationship among Consumer Personality Trait, Home-Stay Characteristics and
Choices of Home-Stay Pattern. Master’s Thesis, Executive Master’s Program of Business Administration,
Tamkang University, New Taipei City, Taiwan, 2011.
24. Wu, C.H. The Impact of Product Design and Personality on Preference of Furniture. Master’s
Thesis, Executive Master’s Program of Business Administration, Tamkang University, New Taipei City,
Taiwan, 2011.
25. Terng, C.C. A Study of Wedding Potential Customers’ Personality and Color Preferences on Behavior
Intentions. Master’s Thesis, Department of Applied Science of Living, Chinese Culture University, Taipei,
Taiwan, 2013.
26. Hsueh, Y.F. The Preferences of Color and Shape in Relation to Women’s Personal Traits—A Case Study
of Ladies Handbags. Master’s Thesis, Department of Textiles and Clothing, Fu Jen Catholic University,
New TaIpei City, Taiwan, 2014.
27. Yang, M.C. A Study on the Relationship between the Morphological Design and Floral Image. Master’s
Thesis, Department of Arts and Design, National Dong Hwa University, Hualien County, Taiwan, 2013.
28. Chang, H.H. Applied Multivariate Analysis; Jian-Hsin Publishing Inc.: Taipei, Taiwan, 1989.
© 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access
article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution
(CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Influence of Personality Traits On Consumer Preferences: The Case of Office Chair Selection by Attractiveness

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Influence of Personality Traits On Consumer Preferences: The Case of Office Chair Selection by Attractiveness

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

sustainability

Sustainability 2018, 10, 4183; doi:10.3390/su10114183 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability

Sustainability 2018, 10, 4183 2 of 19

Sustainability 2018, 10, 4183 3 of 19

Table 2. The fundamental theory of Miryoku engineering.

Area Peculiarity Concept, Theory & Method

Among the therelevant

Table 3. Criteria for qualifying experts.

Background Criteria for Selection

Table 4. Background information of interviewed experts.

Figure 4. Evaluation grid diagram by Expert B1.

3.1.2. Personality Trait

3.1.3. Ranking of Preferences

Box 1. Seven attractiveness factors to be ranked by respondents.

3.1.4. Questions for the Quantification Theory Type I

Table 5. Questions to be answered by respondents in the second portion of questionnaire.

Figure 5. Percentages of respondents by gender.

Sustainability 2018, 10, 4183 13 of 19

Figure 10. Percentages of respondents by month income.

Figure 11. Respondent count for each type of personality trait.

Item Independent Variable Sub-Category Ranking Partial Coefficient of Correlation

Item Independent Variable Sub-Category Ranking Partial Coefficient of Correlation

Independent Individual Overall

You might also like