Gestalt Principles & Fitts’s Law

Gestalt Principles, focus on perception and organization. In the future design, design colors and shapes consistently. Group related elements close together to make relationships clear. At the same time, separate main features and secondary actions, to ensure key elements stand out against the background. While design user experience, arrange navigation items in a linear or logical sequence.

Fitts’ Law, focus on efficiency and movement. While designing user interfaces, make interactive elements (buttons, icons) large enough for users to click or tap easily. Leverage screen edges for key functions since they’re easy to target, stop consider to place menu bar or navigation bar in other places, due to edge and corner’s advantages.

Gestalt principles and Fitts’ Law help create designs that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also functional and intuitive.

When I sit down to design an app or a website, I always keep Gestalt principles in mind to make things easier for users. For example, if I’m designing a shopping app, I’ll place the “Add to Cart” button close to the product image and details so it’s clear that they belong together. I’ll also use the same color for all action buttons, like “Buy Now” or “Save for Later,” because it helps users quickly understand they have similar functions.

I will also apply Fitt’s Law to make interactions smoother. For instance, when designing a mobile game, I’ll make the main action button larger and place it near the bottom of the screen, where users naturally hold their phones. By doing this, I make it easier and faster for users to tap on important buttons, improving their experience and making the app feel more intuitive to use.

shuoning Liang 2024/9/24

Gestalt principles have

Proximity：
Arrange related interface elements (such as buttons, text boxes, and icons) closely so that users can more easily understand their relationship.

Similarity
Use the same color, shape, or font to unify the design of controls with similar functions to enhance the consistency of the interface.

Connectedness
Group related information or operation options together through visual connections (such as lines, borders, etc.) to help users quickly understand the hierarchy of information.

Closure
By adding clear boundaries to elements, let the user’s brain automatically complete unclosed shapes.

Continuity
The arrangement of design interface elements should be regular and consistent.

And Fitts’s law has

Target size
Fitts’s law shows that the larger the target, the faster users will click it. When designing, make sure that the buttons or clickable areas are large enough, especially key function buttons (such as submit, save, etc.) to reduce user misoperation.

Target Distance
Reduce the distance between key operating elements to prevent users from moving too much on the screen.

Edges and Corners
According to Fitts’s Law, the edges and corners of the screen are more clickable areas due to physical limitations. Common functions can be placed in these locations to improve interaction efficiency.

Design strategies that combine the two
Logical grouping and quick operations
Group related functions through the proximity and similarity of the Gestalt, and optimize the distance based on Fitts’s Law. For example, arrange the editing options in the toolbar (such as cut, copy, and paste) closely, and the buttons are large, which is convenient for users to operate quickly.

So, what I will do?
1.Use the similarity of the Gestalt to design consistent interactive buttons, while ensuring that the size and position of the buttons comply with Fitts’s Law, so that users have consistent perception of operations on different pages, and do not need to spend extra time looking for or clicking.

By combining the Gestalt principles with Fitts’s Law, you can create an intuitive, responsive, and visually clear interactive interface, greatly improving the user experience and satisfaction.

Gestalt Principles are principles/laws of human perception that describe how humans group similar elements, recognize patterns and simplify complex images when we perceive objects. Designers use the principles to organize content on websites and other interfaces so it is aesthetically pleasing and easy to understand.

Gestalt Principles has the following basic rules: Common Fate,Symmetry and Order, Similarity, Pragnanz, Invariance, Figure/Ground, Multistability, Continuity or Continuation, Common Region, Closure, Emergence.

Fitts’ Law states that the amount of time required for a person to move a pointer (e.g., mouse cursor) to a target area is a function of the distance to the target divided by the size of the target. Thus, the longer the distance and the smaller the target’s size, the longer it takes.

Based on Fitts‘ Law, some standard interface elements such as the right-click pop-up menu or short drop-down menus have had resounding success, minimizing the user’s travel distance with a mouse in selecting an option—reducing time and increasing productivity. Conversely, long drop-downs, title menus, etc., impede users’ actions, raising movement-time demands.

Powerful designs are often designed with intention. Intentional designers create purposeful designs by following rules, including but not limited to Gestalt principles and Fitts’s laws. Whether deliberately or subconsciously, these rules define the way we interpret and process information, because they exist everywhere: From the signs we see, to the interfaces on our screens, to the logos on billboards. These principles make up our daily living, yet many live in a Gestalt and Fitts constructed society obliviously.

In digital interfaces, Gestalt’s law of proximity, similarity, and continuity specifically coincide nicely when considering readability. For example, a dropdown menu. The uniformity in menu selection options are grouped in a similar orientation to indicate that they are components of the same category. Different dropdown menus are differentiated through proximity. Spacing acts as a barrier to separate and indicate that the two menus do not coexist together, but exist on its own. When considering a website, the dropdown selections directly influences the output display of the webpage. Continuity and common fate guides the users in how their eye processes the screen, whether it be to read vertically, horizontally, follow arrows, view images first, or view text first. Fitts’s laws enhances that experience by predetermining the ideal amount of button padding, and the target touch points of digital screens needed for a fluid user experience.

Acknowledging why these systems exist and came to be are important in creating mindful and effective designs. I plan to refer and reflect on how I design by further applying these principles when approaching design thinking. The more aware a designer is about their decisions, the better their designs are. These pre-constructed laws are the foundational components that help create meaningful digital experiences.

I wasn’t realize how psychology can play an important role in interaction design until reading about Gestalt Principles and Fitt’s Law. I didn’t really think of why most of the interactive interfaces are following similar principles, all the studies and experiences have given the best way to build a great user experience.

When doing something needs to guide users silently, Gestalt Principles can be great references. Users may follow the way that designers want them to go, for example some path to important location in video games. And maybe not only visually, also texts can provide similar effects. According to Gestalt Principles, people’s imagination can be powerful and do a lot work, so unconspicuous elements that don’t disturb main design in the interface can be considered.

Fiit’s Law can help me to decide the layout of interfaces and where the most important buttons or icons should be. They should locate at the easiest place on a screen that users can access, and for sure this will depend on different devices, an Ipad and a kiosk will be layouted differently. Users may not have accurate feelings about distance in screens, so sometimes Fitt’s Law may also help to indicate users softly.

Both Fitt’s Law and Gestalt Principles are great and if I can use them well in my design works, I believed that better user experiences will be made.

Establishing a clear hierarchical structure is crucial in interaction design. By classifying each module and function based on the Gestalt principle (especially the proximity principle), I can arrange related functions coherently within the module. By utilizing the principles of similarity and closure, I can quickly create preliminary wireframes, while the graphic background principle enhances my model by ensuring that important elements stand out.

Combining these principles can help optimize the layout of the interface, making it more reasonable and intuitive. This design strategy enables users to quickly grasp the software’s layout, improving their ability to effectively achieve their goals.

From the perspective of Fitt’s law, I can further optimize the user experience by adjusting button size, spacing, and edge targets. Combining clear feedback of hovering state and independent elements enhances the touch experience and makes users more comfortable.

Ultimately, this integration approach conforms to the user centered design principle, resulting in a smoother and more enjoyable software user experience.

KY – 2024 9 24

I think Fitt’s Law covers a small part of UX, which is thinking about the user’s experience. How to increase user comfort by minimizing the distance and time between the starting point of the interaction and the goal of the interaction.

Gestalt principles, on the other hand, are more visual, focusing on design principles that tell the story of how people are guided step-by-step through different ways of structuring color to the visual point of view.

After reading about the Gestalt Principles, I was not only surprised by how these principles contributed to the user experience, but also by how I had been unconsciously incorporating these laws into my own design work. The fact that I have used these principles without realizing it shows how natural and important they are in design. For example, the Gestalt’s Law of Past Experiences states that past experiences shape our perception of visual elements. Given that, designers can make interfaces feel intuitive and allow for users to navigate the software easier. An example would be our understanding of colors and how they are used in real life vs. on apps/websites (like red and green). The Law of Similarity also affects how users perceive design elements, as they should also look similar or dissimilar depending on the intended purpose. For instance, the confirm and cancel button should not be next to each other (they could be though; however, I am unsure if that is considered good or bad design practice given that I have seen both) and should not be filled in with the same color.

As for Fitt’s Law that discusses the relationship between the distance and time of a target in relation to the success of an action, the types of menu designs particularly fascinated me because I recently noticed Pinterest transitioned from their familiar “long-press for pie menu” feature to a rectangular center menu. Being a long-time user, I was unhappy with the change; however, I now understand why it was necessary, as it affects movement and can be unintuitive for first-time users (and probably a bunch of other issues that they found through user testing).

Understanding why these laws exist is crucial for building designs that resonate with users and improve their experience. Now, with a clearer understanding of both Gestalt Principles and Fitt’s Law, I am able apply them more effectively and confidently to my work to create intuitive and user-friendly designs.

Gestalt principles and Fitt’s laws are very useful for designers to keep in mind while designing interactive interfaces.

While making a software, I  would consider Gestalt’s Law of Proximity to ensure that I am grouping elements that have similar usage or are used together more often, to make navigation more intuitive, while also maintaining visual balance within the elements (making grouped elements have similar shape, colors, or visual traits). I would also try to use familiar design patterns as it makes it more intuitive for users to interact with the interface. 

For Fitts’s Law, I would focus on optimizing target size—especially for frequently used actions—by making buttons larger and easier to tap or click, thus reducing the time and effort needed to interact with them. Placing targets closer to the user’s hand position/cursor makes it easier for them to reach, so I would consider keeping elements like menu items either at the screen’s edge to avoid overshooting, or somewhere in the middle, depending on whether it is a mouse driven or touchscreen interface. As linear menus are most common, I would use them and place items according to the frequency of their use. Lastly, I’d be mindful of space between targets to prevent accidental clicks on adjacent buttons, particularly in mobile or touch-based interfaces

Creating user-friendly software interfaces has always been a hot topic with me. His writing may not still be totally relevant (I mean come on, it was 35 years ago), but as I have continued to learn and progress in the field, applying basic Gestalt and Fitts principles definitely makes for much more user-friendly interfaces. This is how some of these concepts have been affecting the process for my designing.

Gestalt principles are the rules that humans follow to group sets of objects, and which seeks to explain how people naturally organize visual elements into groups or unified wholes when certain principles are met. Designing an Interface & Empathy towards the Layouts When creating an interface design, I value it from users perspective. For instance, I apply the rule of proximity by grouping similar buttons so that users realize they are interrelated. I also make use of similarity in having the same colors or shapes for buttons that serve similar purposes. As a result, users are able to find patterns and navigate through the software better.

This all relates to Fitts’s Law, which refers to the time a user spends from moving there cursor to selecting an area, often something that needs clicking or tapping like a button or link. Larger, closer targets are faster to click. I also try to make more important buttons bigger, and have them easily accessible for the user. For example, I put the “Submit” button at the end of form and over-sized it so that it is more prominent. This eliminates the amount of time and effort it takes an individual to engage with the interface making the experience more pleasant.

I hope to use the principles by Gestalt and Fitts law for that, i order to create organized also yet efficient software. So when a user says an interface is intuitive, it means that they can complete tasks with less wasted energy and fewer mistakes. This increases overall satisfaction and reduces churn so that users continue to utilize the program. As I progress with my design, these principles are becoming part and parcel of what could be a vibrant user interface.

I’d never heard of Gestalt principles before but I’ve used some of the principles before without knowing what they were. For example, the principle of proximity. It makes sense to put things that are related close together, so that things that are different stand out and appear separated. I think many of the principles are intuitive and we may do them without realizing. However, having an active awareness of the principles is very useful. Consciously being aware of my design choices will make me make better choices. Being aware of the Gestalt principles also helps broaden my mind to more design options. I found the principle of closure especially interesting. I think it’s a smart way to add more elements and interest to a design while keeping the look minimalistic. This is something that is very useful when creating logos. The Gestalt principles are extremely important for deciding what design elements to use in different situations. I will use them in the future to create work that is visually pleasing and intuitive to use.

Fitt’s law states that people will be faster to click on bigger targets and that targets should be close. I see how important this is, since it saves people time and makes navigating more smooth and efficient. When designing interactive software in the future, I will make sure to make buttons big enough for the user to click on them easily. There have been times when I’ve been using my phone and the button was really small, so I had to struggle to tap on it perfectly with my finger. It’s very annoying when this happens. I will also make sure to space the buttons and elements out well so that it doesn’t take an annoyingly long time to click or scroll.

“Gestalt Principles”- PART 1 – pp 96 – 97
Introduces the main principles of Proximity, Similarity, Continuity, Closure, and Symmetry in Gestalt psychology. Explains how these principles affect people’s perception and organization of visual information.
Proximity:
Place related elements closer together to indicate that they belong to the same group or have the same function. For example, group navigation buttons together so that users can intuitively recognize that they are used for page navigation.
Similarity:
Use the same color, shape, size, or font to represent elements with similar functions or attributes. For example, essential operation buttons should be marked with the same color in the software interface so that users can quickly identify and distinguish different types of operations.
Elements in different states can be distinguished by similarity. For example, various colors or styles can represent selected and unselected items. Still, they should maintain a certain similarity so that users can understand their relationship.
Continuity:
Use the principle of continuity to guide the user’s eyes. For example, continuous lines or shapes can be used to connect related elements so that the user’s eyes can naturally follow the lines and understand the overall layout and structure of the design.
In web design, continuous layout and navigation elements can be used to guide users smoothly between pages. For example, a continuous menu bar or breadcrumb navigation allows users to clearly know where they are in the website and where they can go.
Closure:
Use the principle of closure to create concise and expressive graphics. In interface design, only a part of the progress bar is displayed, and users can infer the overall progress based on that part.
Symmetry:
Designing a symmetrical layout can give people a sense of stability and harmony. In fields such as web and APP design, symmetrical layouts can be used to attract users’ attention and convey a professional and orderly impression. For example, important information or action buttons can be placed symmetrically on both sides of the interface so that users can find and use them more easily.

“Fitts Law” – PART 1 – pp 98 – 107
Mainly describes the principles and formulas of Fitts’ Law. Explains the relationship between the time required to move to a target and the distance and size of the target. The application of Fitts’s Law in human-computer interaction, such as mouse operation, touch screen interaction, etc., is analyzed through experimental data and actual cases. According to Fitts’s Law, the user interface design is optimized to improve the efficiency and accuracy of user operation. The user’s operation time and error rate are reduced in specific designs. For example, essential buttons are designed to be more significant and close to the user’s operation area.

“As We May Think, Foreseeing the Future, On the Trail of the Memex”- PART 1 – pp. 70 – 95
The concept and function of “Memex” (an imaginary information storage and retrieval device) are introduced. People can draw inspiration from the idea of “Memex” to obtain personalized information storage and retrieval and associative information organization. In interaction design, users can customize interface layout, information screening conditions, etc., through user portraits and personalized settings to improve the efficiency and accuracy of information retrieval.