VERT TEST

Creating a solid foundation for the BERT test has been challenging due to the scarcity of comprehensive scholarly resources on its origins. In my research, I observed the practical use of BERT-like methods in the design industry, particularly as a tool for eliciting emotional responses and assessing user attitudes toward specific stimuli. However, despite its relevance, I found no significant academic material validating or detailing BERT’s origins within scientific literature. Most descriptions available today come from practical blog-style introductions on websites like *UX for the Masses* by Neil Turner, *UX Design* by Sherwin Pollack, and *Clearleft* by Harry Brignull, where the focus is largely on its application as a heuristic for understanding user emotions within UX design processes.

In exploring BERT’s conceptual foundations, I see substantial alignment with George Kelly’s *Repertory Grid Technique* from 1955, which allows individuals to evaluate elements based on bipolar scales, capturing personal constructs and perceptions. Kelly's approach was designed to reveal the unique, subjective ways individuals evaluate their experiences, making it an ideal framework for developing tools that investigate user sentiment and perception. His work emphasizes the value of bipolar dimensions, which are instrumental in understanding how users position themselves in response to opposing attributes, a key component mirrored in BERT tests that use scales from positive to negative reactions as evaluative tools .

Additionally, I observe a strong connection between BERT and J.A. Russell’s *Circumplex Model of Affect*. Russell’s model provides a two-dimensional structure for plotting emotional states based on arousal and valence, which offers a nuanced way to capture users’ emotional responses to stimuli. This circumplex model, much like BERT, categorizes emotional reactions across a range of positive and negative dimensions, offering insights into how users’ affective responses can be mapped within a spatial, circular framework—a method that enriches understanding of user sentiment and emotional reactions to various design elements .

Inspired by these frameworks, I have developed an enhanced version of the BERT test for my research, which I refer to as the VERT test (*Visual, Emotional, Rational Test*). This adaptation combines visual design principles with emotional and rational evaluation metrics, aiming to bridge the gap between scientific rigor and practical application within design fields. By refining this methodology, I intend to provide a structured, research-informed approach to assess user responses in a way that is both insightful for design iterations and anchored in an established theoretical foundation.