IKEA Uncovers Human Insights Through Home Visits

Did you know that IKEA has a division that watches how people live in an effort to better create products that fit into their lifestyles? The company sends researchers into real homes, and what they find is often more interesting than anything a survey would turn up.

Among the discoveries: what time most people wake up (7am), what percentage of people have breakfast at home (60%), and how over 35% of people never eat in their kitchen at all, choosing instead to eat all over the home.

It is a useful reminder that the most valuable insights about human behaviour usually come from watching what people actually do, rather than asking them what they think they do.