When Friction Is a Design Feature, Not a Flaw
In Brief
The internet is designed to be smooth. One-click shopping. Instant subscriptions. Seamless checkouts. That frictionless experience may seem like a gift, but sometimes it conceals a trap. Think of the shiny “Buy Now” button that whisks you into a purchase before you’ve thought it through, or the trial that renews automatically because cancelling is buried in a maze of menus. These manipulative tricks, known as dark patterns, thrive on convenience.
In a 2025 study titled “Dark Patterns and Consumer Vulnerability,” Amit Zac and colleagues from the University of Amsterdam and Oxford explored when these designs are most powerful, and when small obstacles can protect us. Using a realistic online trading experiment, they found that nearly everyone is susceptible to dark patterns, but a simple extra step, like re-entering payment details, can significantly weaken their pull.
About the Author
Samantha Lau
Samantha graduated from the University of Toronto, majoring in psychology and criminology. During her undergraduate degree, she studied how mindfulness meditation impacted human memory which sparked her interest in cognition. Samantha is curious about the way behavioural science impacts design, particularly in the UX field. As she works to make behavioural science more accessible with The Decision Lab, she is preparing to start her Master of Behavioural and Decision Sciences degree at the University of Pennsylvania. In her free time, you can catch her at a concert or in a dance studio.
