Feelings Reflection on the Design of High-Heeled Shoes using a Novel Integrative Methodology of Kansei Engineering and Event Tree Analysis (ETA)

Nowadays, it is possible to assist designer and manufacturer in achieving success and ultimately
their superiority compared to their competitors during design process and sales activities subject to
the acquisition of required awareness and information on the degree of emotional influence of the
products to be made. In shoe industry and in design and producing the high-heeled shoes, paying
attention to creating desired emotion and customer’s attention in buying this type of shoes and the
success in conveying this to customers, compared to its performance, has significant importance. This
article attempts to have a broader understanding in shoe design from the perspective of emotion by
providing aesthetic concepts in the structure of high-heeled shoes and to study the position of each of
the elements of form, color and materials in creating and conveying emotion, which is the goal of a
designer in design. After thorough literature review and pilot studies, two groups were selected each
containing 30 samples from the store customers, female students and female professors of industrial
design to be surveyed with regards to five products of “Charles and Keith” brand. This decision was
based on collection and thorough assessment on 400 high-heeled shoes of the company and the given
attention on design styles of shoes and their aesthetic factors using the method of Kansei engineering
semantic differential as well as written and internet-based questionnaires containing seven-degree
structure for 22 pairs of Kansei words. It is noteworthy to mention that the design style of top
covering surface of shoe in selected products is based on internationally introduced styles for this
type of shoes including Peep Toe, Plat Form, Pump, Sling Back, and Sandal. The reason for selecting
questionnaire’s sampled respondents was the authors’ belief of the respondents’ interest, care and
sensitivity to these products. According to the results of analysis on completed questionnaires using
SPSS and the illustrated tables and diagrams, common or shared emotion from viewpoint of both
groups of respondents were identified and the highest value in the rank was illustrated in the in event
tree analysis (ETA) and the effects of form, color and materials were examined separately. Thereafter,
using this methodology (i.e., ETA) by allocating scores to these factors, the contributing effects of
each one of the factors in creating and conveying emotions, in the design process of a product were
obtained. In this group of products, the results of research stressed on the significant impact of the
form compared to the other factors of color and materials in creating an emotion received by the user
at her first sight. It is expected that with utilization of findings of this research, the experts in this
domain can have a novel approach and thinking in design process of shoes and to better solve such
problems as lack of interest in buying the existing shoe products and consequently the reduction in
sales volume in order to assist producers in protecting their capital as well as advancement in process
of design and making the successful shoe products.