The statement is, of course, entirely wrong. Design isn't merely about arranging pixels or chasing the latest trend. It's about engineering a user experience based on how people think, decide, and behave. If you ignore psychology, you are ignoring your user.

The best UX doesn't happen by instinct; it is grounded in proven psychological principles. Here are four fundamental psychological laws that govern every great interface:

1. Law of Prägnanz (Simplicity)

The Principle: Our brains crave simplicity, grouping things, ignoring visual noise, and looking for meaning fast. We interpret complex shapes in the simplest possible way.

The UX Application: A cluttered interface creates stress because the brain has to work harder to find meaning.

  • Actionable Tip: Use ample white space to establish visual hierarchy. Group related items to form clear, understandable chunks.

2. Hick's Law (The Paradox of Choice)

The Principle: More choices equal more stress, causing users to freeze when overwhelmed by options. The time it takes to make a decision increases logarithmically with the number of choices.

The UX Application: Don't present ten primary navigation options on a single screen. Reduce the mental load.

  • Actionable Tip: Keep menus, forms, and primary actions simple. Guide users directly towards the desired action path.

3. Fitt's Law (Ease of Access)

The Principle: The time required to move to a target is a function of the distance to the target and its size. Essentially, small buttons far away create friction; big, close buttons create ease.

The UX Application: You must prioritize the most important elements in an interface based on ease of interaction.

  • Actionable Tip: Make important actions (like primary CTAs) easy to reach and click. This is critical for mobile design where the thumb is the primary input.

4. Jakob's Law (The Law of Familiarity)

The Principle: Users spend most of their time on other websites/apps. They expect your product to work like the others they’ve used. Breaking this expectation breaks their trust.

The UX Application: Consistency and pattern recognition are your friends. If a hamburger menu means navigation everywhere else, it should mean navigation on your app, too.

  • Actionable Tip: Don't be "clever" or overly creative with standard patterns. Be familiar, use industry standards, and leverage your users' existing mental models.

Conclusion

Top designers understand that their job is to decode how people think, not just what they click. By rooting your design decisions in psychological principles, you move from designing screens to engineering outcomes—and that’s what separates a good UX designer from a great one.