Exploring the Cognitive and Emotional Impact of Deceptive Patterns: An EEG, Eye-Tracking, and Sentiment Analysis of User Experience

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Jamalifard, Marzieh and Russell-Rose, Tony. 2025. Exploring the Cognitive and Emotional Impact of Deceptive Patterns: An EEG, Eye-Tracking, and Sentiment Analysis of User Experience. Interacting with Computers, ISSN 0953-5438 [Article] (In Press)

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Abstract or Description

This study investigates the cognitive and emotional impacts of specific ”Deceptive Patterns” in user interface design on well-known online platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Spotify, Salesforce, Eventbrite, and PayPal. The focus is on two types of deceptive patterns, “hard to cancel” and “hidden subscription” practices. Employing an integrated methodology of electroencephalogram (EEG), eye-tracking, and sentiment analysis, this research analyzes how these patterns influence user behaviour, attention, and motional responses. The study utilized EEG to measure cognitive load as users interacted with “hard to cancel” interfaces revealing that these platforms increase cognitive demands, inducing greater mental effort and frustration. Eye-tracking data demonstrated that platforms with more transparent mechanisms effectively captured and held user attention on the Terms and Conditions as the key elements, thereby fostering user trust and enhancing transparency. Sentiment analysis further assessed users’ emotional responses, underscoring the positive association between transparent interfaces and user satisfaction. This research highlights the importance of ethical design practices that prioritize user autonomy and transparency, offering a unique methodological contribution through the combined use of EEG, eye-tracking, and sentiment analysis to comprehensively capture cognitive and emotional responses.

Item Type:

Article

Additional Information:

This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in Interacting with Computers following peer review. The version of record will be available online at: https://academic.oup.com/iwc

Data Access Statement:

The data underlying this article cannot be shared publicly due to the privacy of individuals that participated in the study. The data will be shared on reasonable request to the corresponding author.

Keywords:

Deceptive Patterns, EEG, Eye Tracking, Cognitive Load, User Experience

Departments, Centres and Research Units:

Computing

Dates: