How to Conduct a Workshop on the Psych Framework for Your Team
Duration: 1 Hour
Goal: To help your team understand the Psych framework and how to apply it to evaluate user experience on a landing page or onboarding flow.
Session Breakdown
This session is designed to help the team understand the core principles of the Psych framework and apply them practically to assess user motivation during a product onboarding flow. The session is divided into time slots with clear instructions for each activity. Team members will work in pairs to score elements and contribute their evaluations.
0-10 Minutes: Introduction to the Psych Framework
Objective: Introduce the Psych framework and its relevance to user experience (UX). Read here to understand more about it https://devanshchawla.substack.com/publish/post/151270723
Details:
Explain Psych Score: A measure of user motivation ranging from 0 to 100.
Introduce +Psych and -Psych factors: These are design elements that either motivate (+Psych) or hinder (-Psych) user engagement.
Define Psych Score Range:
High Motivation (50-70)
Medium Motivation (30-50)
Low Motivation (10-30)
Example of Psych Application:
“Think of Psych like a scale of emotional energy users bring when they interact with your product. High Psych means they’re excited and motivated to engage, and low Psych means they’re frustrated or confused.”
10-20 Minutes: Breakdown of the Psych Framework
Objective: Ensure the team understands how to identify +Psych and -Psych elements on a page.
Activity: Discuss each factor’s impact and create a shared language for scoring.
Discussion Topics:
+Psych Elements: Social proof, clear action-oriented layout, high-quality images, clear messaging.
-Psych Elements: Crowded layout, unclear next steps, low-quality images, poor navigation.
20-40 Minutes: Group Activity - Element Scoring
Objective: Each pair evaluates the onboarding page using the Psych framework.
Details:
Divide the team into pairs.
Assign each pair a different section of the onboarding page (e.g., headline, CTA, images, navigation).
Task: Each pair will assign Psych scores to each element based on the table below and write down their reasoning.
Table for Scoring Elements:
40-50 Minutes: Scoring & Group Discussion
Objective: Pairs calculate an aggregate Psych score and discuss the results.
Details:
After each pair completes their evaluation, they will average their individual Psych scores for each element.
Each pair shares their scores with the group, explaining their rationale behind each score.
Example:
"If the CTA button was hard to locate, it might score -10 for Low -Psych. But if it was clear and prominent, it could score +15 for High +Psych."
50-60 Minutes: Summing Up and Actionable Insights
Objective: Finalize the overall Psych score and discuss action points.
Details:
After all steps are evaluated and scores are added, calculate the final Psych score for the entire onboarding flow.
Discuss the main takeaways: which elements had the biggest impact (positive or negative) on user motivation?
Actionable Insights: What can be changed or optimized? What improvements can be made to enhance the user’s motivation to engage?
“The Psych Score helps you understand the emotional journey users take with your product. Optimizing elements that add to this emotional energy will improve conversion rates and user engagement.”
Conclusion
The Psych framework is a powerful tool to assess user experience, enabling teams to identify friction points and elements that boost motivation. By conducting hands-on evaluations of landing pages or onboarding flows, your team can directly contribute to optimizing the user journey, improving both engagement and conversion rates.
End Note: Use the table as a guide to rate elements consistently, and always assess the user’s motivation at each stage to ensure that the experience aligns with their expectations.