Matthias Laschke Habit Summit

Pleasurable troublemakers »… and an Aesthetic of Friction«

Matthias Laschke // Folkwang University of Arts // Design // Experience and Interaction //

People want to achieve personal goals, increase self-awareness and self-actualization

Designing for change means designing for happiness… »a tough business?«

We all have some theories of what makes us happy.

Cruelty of happiness »Do we really know what makes us happy?«

We all have some theories of what makes us happy. Swimming …


We all have some theories of what makes us happy. Reading more books. Especially belletristic books.


We all have some theories of what makes us happy. A little outdoor exercise, fresh air, and the pleasures of saving the environment.


The pursuit of happiness is a tricky thing.


We might not know what makes us happy, before actually trying it – swimming We have a faint idea of what could make us happy, but never get around doing it – belletristic books We know what makes us happy, but it is not at all »pleasurable« – riding the bike, at least in the beginning Designing for happiness is not only about fun, comfort, friends, love and countless happy days. It's about getting people to engage in activities, which will make their life happier – if they would only try. It is about supporting people to transform themselves.

We can regulate and punish, …

Strategies to instill change »… are abundant«

We can regulate and punish, appeal …


We can regulate and punish, appeal, manipulate …


We can regulate and punish, appeal, manipulate, quantify and feedback …


We can regulate and punish, appeal, manipulate, quantify and feedback or even gamify.


Speed Camera Lottery // www.thefuntheory.com

Each strategy and each according »design« embodies an number of implicit assumptions about people, about what they want and what makes them tick.

Strategies »… and their meaning«

Speed Camera Lottery When became winning money »fun« at all? Is it appropriate to be paid for sticking to a traffic rule? Will I infer that all rules, which do not make money, can be disregarded? Is there a difference between driving slowly to get a chance to win in a lottery versus not to endanger other people? Will I speed, if I never win? Does the on average 7 km/h reduction in speed justify the implicit messages implied by the design? Designing for change without carefully considering the particular meaning inscribed into the object is irresponsible – the »How« matters

From problem solvers »… to troublemakers«

Design has a tradition of making objects convenient – its ideal are »things made to measure«, to solve problems Objects as change agents are different. They do not adapt, but demand adaption We lack expertise to design for change We need an »Aesthetic of Friction« to complement the ubiquitous »Aesthetic of Convenience« to create a genre of objects ,we call affectionately: Pleasurable Troublemakers

A pleasurable troublemaker »Fifty/Fifty Cake«

FiftyFifty Cake // Laschke, Hassenzahl, 2012

A special loaf pan for pound cake



2125 calories

1400 calories



Fifty/Fifty creates choice, where none had been before.

The health conscious – start here!

The stern believer in butter – start here!



Fifty/Fifty adds some irony to the mix.

The piece for the hedonic … … becomes healthier with each additional piece

Friction …

Pleasurable troublemakers »Principles«

Situatedness Alternative Freedom Meaning-making

Troublemakers are situated – they flourish on the intimate understanding and knowledge of a situation and practices at hand. They are part of a story Troublemakers offer an alternative in line with an ideal self Troublemakers »rescript« moments of choice – they neither simplify nor restrict Troublemakers nudge people into meaning-making – the friction creates reflection at least for those, who do not already share the goal Messing with people by creating friction is necessary to make them reflect, but it is also likely to create reactance – a troublemaker can be seen as a threat to autonomy

Friction, but in a light way. Reactance is reduced when the communicator is liked and appears similar // Silvia, 2005

Pleasurable troublemakers »Principles«

Naivety Understanding Irony/Ambiguity

Troublemakers are not especially smart. They are Don Quijotes fighting against windmills Troublemakers never create choice, which requires superhuman powers to behave ideally. They are soft and subversive rather than strict and explicit Troublemakers allow for cheating or make cheating even a part of their concept. They embody a better Self, but allow for transgressions. They are partners in crime, mirrors

A pleasurable troublemaker »Keymoment«

Keymoment // Laschke, Hassenzahl, 2014



You can always cheat the system. But you can never cheat yourself.



You can have a break.



And Keymoment understands that it is raining outside.


A pleasurable troublemaker »ReMind«

ReMind // Brechmann, Laschke, Hassenzahl, Digel, 2013

Towards an Aesthetic of Friction »My conclusion«

… are situated instead of overly general … offer simple, alternative plans in line with ideal Selves instead of leaving this to their users … encourage choice instead of restriction or simplification … nudge users into meaning-making and generalization instead of being just satisfied with »objective« behavioral change … are naive (instead of smart), understanding (instead of a know-all) and slightly ironic (instead of dead serious) Pleasurable troublemakers are devices to instill change through behavior and insight – with a smile, but not with outrageous fun

If we believe in the power of small interventions, we need to discuss how to make them right.

Pleasurable troublemakers

Thank you.

www.matthiaslaschke.com www.pleasurabletroublemakers.com www.marc-hassenzahl.de [email protected]

www.matthiaslaschke.com hassenzahl.wordpress.com [email protected]

Matthias Laschke Habit Summit

Self Improvement

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