Effectiveness of elevator service signs: Measurement of perceived understandability, willingness to comply and behaviour

This research examines the effectiveness of four elevator service signs. The signs' purpose is to reduce delays for longer distance riders by dissuading people from using the elevator when they are only going up one floor or down two floors. Three of the four signs were described in Chapanis' (1965, Human Factors 7, 1–17) seminal treatise entitled ‘Words, words, words…’: an original sign and two others that he suggested as possibly being better. The fourth was an enhanced sign incorporating human factor principles that were derived from research since Chapanis' article. The enhancements involved the use of colour, a signal word panel, icons/ pictorial, and direct, explicit wording of the required behaviour. In Experiment 1, participants rated the understandability of each sign and their willingness to obey its instructions. The pattern of the means was the same for both questions. The original sign was rated lowest and the enhanced sign was rated highest, with the two other signs receiving intermediate ratings. In Experiment 2, the signs were placed on each floor of six multi-story buildings adjacent to the elevator call buttons. People's use of the elevators during the posting of each sign and during no-sign (control) periods was measured. The experimenter rode the elevators and counted the total number of passengers using the elevators as well as the number who rode up only one floor or down one or two floors (noncompliers). The new enhanced sign increased compliance compared to the other three signs and the no-sign period. These results suggest that design principles derived from recent research can help to promote comprehension, motivation and compliance behaviour to signs.