Haga studied the repercussions of labeling a light as “environmentally friendly.” He reports that “Built environments with objects that are labeled ‘environmentally friendly’ appear to change people’s behavior. For example, one study has shown that labeling a desktop lamp ‘environmentally friendly’ can enhance color discrimination, in comparison with when the lamp is labeled ‘conventional,’ even though there is no physical difference between the two lamps. This article explored . . . this label effect by asking participants to conduct a proofreading task on a desk lit up by a desktop lamp that was either labeled ‘environmentally friendly’ or ‘conventional’; in reality, the two lamps were identical. Participants high in environmental concern performed better when the lamp was labeled ‘environmentally friendly.’ Moreover, the light from the lamp labeled ‘environmentally friendly’ was rated as more comfortable [regardless of the participants’ level of environmental concern].”
Andreas Haga. “Eco-Label Effects in the Built Environment: Does Labeling a Light Source Environmentally Friendly Influence Performance and Judgment?” Sage Open, in press, https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244018766977
Sally Augustin, PhD, is the editor of Research Design Connections(www.researchdesignconnections.com). Research Design Connectionsreports on research conducted by social and physical scientists that designers can apply in practice. Insights derived from recent studies are integrated with classic, still relevant findings in concise, powerful articles. Topics covered range from the cognitive, emotional, and physiological implications of sensory and other physical experiences to the alignment of culture, personality, and design, among others. Information, in everyday language, is shared in a monthly subscription newsletter, an archive of thousands of published articles, and a free daily blog. Readers learn about the latest research findings immediately, before they’re available elsewhere. Sally, who is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, is also the author of Place Advantage: Applied Psychology for Interior Architecture(Wiley, 2009) and, with Cindy Coleman, The Designer’s Guide to Doing Research: Applying Knowledge to Inform Design(Wiley, 2012). She is a principal at Design With Science (www.designwithscience.com) and can be reached at sallyaugustin@designwithscience.com.