Ritual Design: An Underrated UX Design Tool

When you think of a ritual, what springs to mind? Perhaps you think of a significant life event such as a wedding, or a spiritual practice like meditation. In reality, rituals are performed much more ubiquitously than you might have thought. When you brush your teeth, do you first squeeze toothpaste onto your brush and then wet it or vice versa? When you make coffee, do you stir and then tap the spoon on the side of the cup a specific number of times?

Rituals comprise of particular behaviours, which are intentional and bring about a distinct emotional outcome. These behaviours are often idiosyncratic and not necessarily instrumental, yet are marked with mindful engagement. Athletes may perform rituals like bouncing a basketball 3 times before a free throw. Although the number of times the ball is bounced has no direct impact on the player’s shooting ability, the mindful and intentional sequence of actions makes it a ritual.

Here’s how a simple ritual led to healthier diets

In a similar way to diamond rings, rituals can be deliberately designed to encourage a desired behaviour or outcome. Research by Baxter et. al (2020) has explored how ritual design can improve food craving control and thereby lead to healthier food consumption. For a two week period, participants in the control group were instructed to be mindful of their grocery purchases and note their daily calorie intake. The participants in the experimental group were instructed to perform a ritual upon entering a supermarket, prior to doing their grocery shopping, using the ‘ritual app’ intervention. The ritual consisted of noting down 3 unhealthy food cravings on the app, for example chocolate, pizza and candy, and then pressing down on the screen until the text ‘explodes’ and disappears. The experimental group was also asked to note their daily calorie intake. It was found that the group who had performed the ritual had consumed 20% less calories daily compared to the control group.