Reveal participants' emotional reactions and unfiltered opinions by having them fill in speech bubbles on visual stimuli.
The Bubble Test uses speech bubbles and images to uncover participants' emotional reactions, internal dialogue, and unfiltered opinions about designs.
The Bubble Test is a projective research technique that presents participants with images, screenshots, or scenarios and asks them to write their thoughts, reactions, or dialogue in blank speech bubbles, similar to a comic strip. This indirect approach reveals emotional responses, internal dialogue, and unfiltered opinions that direct questioning might not uncover, particularly when participants are reluctant to express negative feelings or when the topic is sensitive. UX researchers, brand strategists, and marketing teams use the Bubble Test to understand how people interpret visual communication, what emotional associations designs trigger, and which elements of a layout capture attention first. The method is especially effective with participants who struggle with verbal articulation, including children, elderly users, or people working in a non-native language. Because it uses imagery rather than abstract questions, the Bubble Test lowers the cognitive barrier to participation and often produces more honest, spontaneous responses than traditional surveys or interviews. It can be used as a standalone method or integrated into longer research sessions as a warm-up exercise or complementary data collection technique.
Determine the goal of your bubble test, such as finding out the most preferred navigation item or the most comprehensible icon.
Create paper or digital printouts of the interface/components you want to test. Ensure the elements are big enough for participants to easily read and understand.
Recruit a diverse group of users representing your target audience. Depending on the scope of your test, 5 to 10 participants should suffice.
Provide clear instructions to the participants. Explain that they will circle or assign a specific number of bubbles to each item, with more bubbles indicating higher preference or comprehension. You can use a scale of 1 to 5 bubbles, or let them distribute a set number of bubbles among the options.
Ask participants to rank the items by filling in bubbles next to each option. Encourage them to think aloud and provide reasoning for their choices.
Gather the completed printouts and compile the data, calculating average scores for each item.
Analyze the participants' explanations alongside the scoring data to understand common preferences, concerns, or confusions.
Based on the insights gained from the bubble test, iterate your designs to better meet the preferences and comprehension levels of your target users.
Document the results, insights, and design implications from the bubble test. Share this report with stakeholders and team members to help inform design decisions.
After completing a Bubble Test study, the team will have a collection of participant-generated responses that reveal emotional associations, first impressions, and unfiltered reactions to visual stimuli. These responses provide qualitative insights into how users perceive and interpret design elements, brand messaging, and visual hierarchy. The analysis will surface common themes in emotional response, identify which elements attract positive versus negative associations, and highlight where visual communication succeeds or fails to convey its intended message. These findings directly inform design decisions about layout, imagery, messaging tone, and brand positioning.
Keep the Bubble Test ready for sensitive topics where participants may not feel comfortable discussing feelings directly but will project them onto images.
Use image interpretation as a projective technique for brand testing by asking what kind of company participants think uses a particular logo or visual.
The Bubble Test works independently or as a complementary exercise within longer interviews or focus group sessions.
Use diverse images representing different scenarios to uncover a broader range of emotional responses across participants.
Follow up circled areas or filled bubbles with open-ended questions like 'Tell me more about why this caught your attention.'
Test the same design with different audience segments to identify how perception varies across demographics and experience levels.
Use bubble tests early in the design process to validate visual hierarchy assumptions before investing in detailed usability testing.
Combine bubble test data with eye-tracking studies when possible to triangulate attention and emotional response insights.
Using images that suggest a particular emotional response biases the results. Choose neutral, realistic scenarios and avoid images that obviously telegraph the 'correct' reaction you expect.
Presenting more than five to seven images causes fatigue and less thoughtful responses. Keep the stimulus set focused on your core research questions rather than trying to test everything at once.
Counting bubble responses quantitatively without reading the actual content misses the method's primary value. The richness is in the specific words, emotions, and associations participants express.
Bubble responses alone can be ambiguous. Always follow up with brief verbal questions to clarify what participants meant and why they wrote what they did.
Testing only ideal scenarios misses pain points and frustrations. Include images of problematic situations, error states, or confusing layouts to understand negative emotional responses.
Document outlining objectives, scope, methodology, participants, and timeline.
List of recruited participants with demographics and screening criteria.
Signed documents informing participants about the study and their rights.
Step-by-step instructions and scenario prompts for consistent test administration.
Structured forms for recording participant responses and observations.
Session recordings for deeper analysis of participant behavior and reactions.
Compiled data of participant responses, preferences, and attention patterns.
Systematic analysis identifying patterns, trends, and design implications.
Practical suggestions and next steps based on findings from the test.
Comprehensive document sharing methodology, findings, and recommendations.