Curvature Preference

Curvature Preference

Reviewed by Faisal Zaidi

The reported tendency to prefer curved contours over sharp-angled ones.

What it is

Bar and Neta reported it in 2006, and a 2015 study found it in humans and great apes, to different degrees. It is drawn from work by Moshe Bar and Maital Neta (2006).

In effect

In the article on why we trust rounded logos, it supplies the background finding that curved contours are liked more than sharp-angled ones.

What it does not say

The preference is a tendency found across groups of people, not a rule for every viewer or every object. The studies compared curved and sharp-angled contours and do not say that a curved design is better in every setting.

Sources

  1. Bar, M., & Neta, M. (2006). Humans Prefer Curved Visual Objects. Psychological Science, 17(8), 645-648.
  2. Munar, E., Gomez-Puerto, G., Call, J., & Nadal, M. (2015). Common Visual Preference for Curved Contours in Humans and Great Apes. PLOS ONE.