Understanding the inference and design of haptic experiences

Haptic experiences – technology-mediated experiences of touch – are complex and enigmatic; they are intertwined with the user’s motivations, context, and past experiences and are deeply interwoven with other sensory modalities. To better understand such experiences, we develop the Inference-Design Model for Haptic Experience. The model separates stimulus, sensation, and experience and identifies two diametrical processes: inference and design. Inference is the cognitive process through which humans interpret a sensory environment, while design involves the creation of such a sensory environment. Grounded in philosophical, neuroscientific, and psychological literature, we discuss the formation of haptic experiences facilitated through the structure and components of the Inference-Design Model. We use the model to present six key observations about the inference of haptic experiences and the design processes that enable them. The observations and their implications for researchers contribute to a fundamental understanding of haptic experiences in a model-centric research paradigm.