Identifying affect elements based on a conceptual model of affect: A case study on a smartphone

•A conceptual model of affect was developed to understand the clear concept of affect.•Three phases of Affect were developed: primitive, descriptive, and evaluative affect.•Affect through a smartphone was classified into two parts: appearance and applications.•A systematic procedure for identifying and verifying affect elements was developed.

The concept of affect has been considered as a requisite for the success of a product in the market. However, ‘affect’ is an ill-defined concept. This study developed a new conceptual model to explain the fundamental concept of affect. Based on this model, a systematic procedure of affect element identification was proposed using a literature review, a focus group interview, an internet survey and statistical analyses. Affect elements of smartphones were classified into two parts: appearance and applications. The results of this study are expected to help developers understand the nature of affect. The systematic approach proposed in the study can be applied with minor modifications to identify affect elements of other smart products.Relevance to industryThis study proposed a conceptual model of affect and identified affect elements of smartphones. The list of affect elements will be helpful for developing and evaluating smartphones including diverse types of smart products.