What is Affordance?
An affordance is a property of an object or interface that suggests how it can be used. A button affords pressing; a handle affords pulling; a text field affords typing.
How it works
The concept was introduced by psychologist James Gibson (1977) for physical environments and adapted for design by Don Norman (1988). Norman distinguishes between real affordances (physical properties that enable actions) and perceived affordances (visual cues that suggest actions). In digital design, most affordances are perceived: a raised, shadowed rectangle suggests clickability even though there is nothing physical to press. When affordances are clear, users intuitively know how to interact without instructions. When affordances are ambiguous or misleading (a flat text element that is actually a button), users struggle.
Applied example
A door with a flat metal plate affords pushing; a door with a handle affords pulling. When a door has a handle but must be pushed, people consistently pull first (Norman’s ‘Norman doors’). The same principle applies digitally: an underlined blue text affords clicking because of web conventions.
Why it matters
Affordances are the foundation of intuitive design, determining whether users can figure out an interface without instruction and reducing the cognitive effort required to interact with products.
