Researchers in this field aim to understand the mechanisms underlying learning, memory, problem-solving, decision-making, and other cognitive processes and connect them with learning and learning abilities. Understanding how people perceive, process, and learn information is crucial for creating effective and user-friendly designs. By conducting research on user preferences, mental models, and cognitive processes, designers can create interfaces and experiences that align with users' needs and expectations. Design research involving cognition and learning often falls under the umbrella of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and User Experience (UX) design. Key areas of focus in cognition and learning include:

Perception and Attention: Design elements such as Information architecture, layout, visual hierarchy, colour, and typography can influence how users perceive and interact with information. Understanding how users attend to specific design features and stimuli helps researchers create designs that capture attention effectively and convey the intended message. Further, it is important to understand how individuals focus their cognitive resources on relevant information while filtering out distractions for better communication.

Memory and Recall: Designers need to consider how users encode, store, and retrieve information. Well-designed interfaces can leverage principles of memory retention to ensure users can easily find and remember important information, reducing cognitive load and increasing efficiency. It is important to understand how information is encoded, stored, and retrieved in the brain. This includes studies on short-term memory, long-term memory, episodic memory, semantic memory, and working memory.

Decision-making and Problem-solving: Cognition plays a central role in problem-solving and creative thinking. Design research explores how designers approach complex challenges, generate ideas, and make decisions, shedding light on effective design thinking and ideation processes. Analysing the cognitive processes involves in solving problems and making decisions, ranging from everyday tasks to complex-system design.

Information Design Research: Cognition research can help designers to organize information in a way that is easy to understand and navigate. By employing principles such as chunking, hierarchy, icons & layout, and clear labelling, designers can enhance users' ability to find and process information efficiently.

Overall, incorporating cognition and learning research in design ensures that products and experiences are user-centered, intuitive, and optimized for human cognitive capabilities. By addressing users' cognitive needs, designers can create more efficient, enjoyable, and meaningful interactions, ultimately leading to better user experiences.