Chapter 10. Understanding the perception of time
This chapter covers
- How perception alters time
- How quickly your app should respond
- Improving the perception of how long tasks take
In this chapter, we’ll look at how people perceive time when using a mobile app and the factors that influence their perception. I’ll then show you how you can positively influence perception to make your app feel quick and responsive. This allows people to believe the app is helping them achieve their goal faster and not wasting their time. In this chapter, you’ll also hear about some of the ways Raymond adjusted his shopping app to allow for different perceptions of time.
As humans, we perceive time in different ways based on a variety of circumstances. You may have been on a journey and felt it took longer to get to the destination than it took to return home, when both legs of the trip took the same amount of time. You may also have experienced occasions of being engrossed in an activity or conversation without noticing how much time had passed. Or, there may have been times when a task you were undertaking or waiting for took what seemed like forever. The people who use your app will also have varying perceptions of the time it takes to perform various tasks and activities.