Ethics in Design: When Aesthetic Beauty Conflicts with Principles

Natalie Viskere
Dec 8
3 min read

Every designer has experienced that moment. The pixel-perfect mockup is glowing. The client is smiling. You feel like Michelangelo unveiling the Sistine Chapel.

And then… the reality hits you: “Wait. Is this… actually good for people?”

Welcome to the paradox where aesthetics and ethics collide. Let’s unpack this from a very personal, slightly sarcastic, but deeply professional perspective.

1. Aesthetics vs. Functionality: The Eternal Tug-of-War

Designers love beauty. We obsess over spacing, colours, symmetry, and that one icon that must be exactly 18px or else civilisation collapses.

But aesthetics must serve the user - not seduce them into confusion.

A beautiful button that no one notices? Useless.A stunning layout that hides critical actions? Dangerous.

I once saw - and regretfully participated in - a project where a client’s personal vision of the perfect design resulted in navigation issues. Users felt like treasure hunters, except they hadn’t asked to play.

Lesson: If your aesthetic forces people to struggle, it’s no longer design. It’s a decoration.

2. The Designer’s Responsibility to Society

This one’s heavy. Designers influence behaviour - sometimes subtly, sometimes dramatically.

We can:

Make apps more accessible
Help users make informed decisions
Build trust and transparency
Reduce friction to positive actions

…or we can go the other way:

Dark patterns
Manipulative UX
“Oops, we made the unsubscribe button the same colour as the background.”
“Sure, let’s make users share personal data to access a PDF.”

Whether we like it or not, our choices shape digital ethics. And no amount of aesthetic brilliance justifies harming users, misleading them, or nudging them into something they didn’t ask for.

3. Practical Ethical Dilemmas (aka: design drama in real life)

Here are some greatest hits:

The “Pretty But Painful” Layout

A team pushes for a magazine-style UI full of whitespace. Stunning.Except that half the audience uses 13-inch screens. Suddenly, scrolling becomes a gym workout.

Dilemma: Keep the aesthetic vision or respect real-world usage? You know the right answer.

The “Make the CTA impossible to miss… please”

A business wants bold, flashy, borderline aggressive CTAs.You want subtle, elegant interactions.

Dilemma: Prioritise business KPIs or user comfort? Good design finds a humane middle ground.

The Accessibility Mirage

“I think the grey text looks so chic.”Yes, but 15% of users literally cannot read it.

Dilemma: Trendy vs. inclusive.Spoiler: inclusivity wins. Trends don’t.

The Personal Data Trap

“Just hide the opt-out behind two folding menus - it converts better.”Yes, it converts better. It also converts your soul into a raisin.

Dilemma: Short-term metrics vs. long-term trust. Choose trust. Always.

4. My Personal Code of Professional Ethics

I’m no saint. I’ve made mistakes, followed questionable requests, and defended a few too many “minimalist-but-useless” layouts in my career.

But over time, I’ve shaped a simple (but strict) internal code:

If it’s confusing, it’s wrong.

Users should never feel tricked or lost.

If it excludes, it breaks the community.

Accessibility is not an optional add-on.

If it manipulates, it violates trust.

Metrics matter, but honesty matters more.

If it looks beautiful but behaves poorly, it’s not good design.

Form supports function - never replaces it.

If I can’t explain a design decision without cringing, I shouldn’t ship it.

Professional embarrassment is an early warning system.

Final Thoughts: Beauty Needs a Backbone

Design is powerful. It can uplift or mislead. It can include or exclude. It can make people feel smart - or make them feel like they need a PhD to find the settings icon.

So yes, beauty is important. But beauty with principles? That’s where true design begins.

Let’s keep creating things that look good and do good.

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