I was looking for reading for our course next term at the d.school called "Business Practice Innovation," as we might have the students do some prototyping of the "waiting in line experience." I had this vague recollection of an old article on the psychology of waiting in lines. I was also thinking of the topic because it is Black Friday in the U.S., where many people get up absurdly early the day after Thanksgiving (and sometimes camp in front of stores) to get gifts at bargain prices (see the picture above at Wal-Mart).
After a bit of web search, I found it, and to my surprise, it was written by David Maister in 1985. And is called "The Psychology of Waiting Lines." It hasn’t lost a bit of spark. I will keep looking for articles on the subject, but I would be surprised if anything this good has been written since. His guidelines are simple, but have powerful implications for designing the experience:
Occupied Time Seems Shorter Than Unoccupied Time
People Want to Get Started (e.g., once you devote a little attention to people — hand them a menu or a drink or some task to do, they feel like things have started and the time seems to go by more quickly)
Anxiety Makes Waits Longer
Uncertain Waits Are Longer Than Known, Finite Waits
Unexplained Waits Are Longer Than Explained Waits
Unfair Waits are Longer that Equitable Waits
The More Valuable The Service, The Longer The Customer Will Wait
Solo Waits Feel Longer Than Group Waits
I urge you to check out the details. Not only are these ideas ones that organizations and their designers can actually use, most also can be traced to basic — and well-researched — psychological principles.
P.S. In looking for a good picture, I found this one of people waiting in line in Shanghai that looks like an especially bleak experience to me — I’d love to see a d.school class tackle that one.