Visual complexity and aesthetic perception of web pages

The visual appearance of a Web page influences the way a user will interact with the page. Web page structural elements (such as text, tables, links, and images) and their characteristics (such as colour and size) are used to determine the visual presentation and complexity level of a Web page. We theorise that by understanding a user's visual and aesthetic perception of a Web page we can understand the cognitive effort required for interaction with that page. This paper describes an investigation into user perception of the visual complexity and aesthetic appearance of Web pages. Results show a strong and high correlation between users' perception of visual complexity, structural elements (links, images, words and sections) and aesthetic appearance (organisation, clearness, cleanliness, interestingness and beautifulness) of a Web page. We argue that the results should be used as a further understanding for keeping the balance between aesthetic appearance of a Web page and its visual complexity. Web pages will then be designed that can still be aesthetically attractive but also usable and not overloaded with information for the users.