As technology increasingly aligns with users' personal values, traditional models of usability, focused on functionality and specifically effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction, may not fully capture how people perceive and evaluate it. This study investigates how the warm-glow phenomenon, the positive feeling associated with doing good, shapes perceived usability. An experimental approach was taken in which participants evaluated a hypothetical technology under conditions designed to evoke either the intrinsic (i.e., personal fulfillment) or extrinsic (i.e., social recognition) dimensions of warm-glow. A Multivariate Analysis of Variance as well as subsequent follow-up analyses revealed that intrinsic warm-glow significantly enhances all dimensions of perceived usability, while extrinsic warm-glow selectively influences perceived effectiveness and satisfaction. These findings suggest that perceptions of usability extend beyond functionality and are shaped by how technology resonates with users' broader sense of purpose. We conclude by proposing that designers consider incorporating warm-glow into technology as a strategic design decision.

翻译：随着技术日益与用户的个人价值观相契合，传统以功能为核心、特别是聚焦于有效性、效率和满意度的可用性模型，可能无法完全捕捉人们如何感知和评估技术。本研究探讨了温暖感现象——即与行善相关的积极感受——如何塑造感知可用性。研究采用实验方法，让参与者在旨在诱发温暖感内在维度（即个人成就感）或外在维度（即社会认可）的条件下，评估一项假设性技术。多元方差分析及后续的深入分析表明，内在温暖感显著增强了感知可用性的所有维度，而外在温暖感则选择性地影响感知有效性和满意度。这些发现表明，可用性感知超越了功能性，并受到技术如何与用户更广泛的目标感产生共鸣的影响。最后，我们建议设计者将温暖感作为一项战略性设计决策融入技术中。