He has a background in industrial design, and in 2002 he obtained his Ph.D. for research on emotional product experience. His main research interest is in the field of design, emotion, and subjective well-being. In cooperation with several international companies, he studies why and how consumer products evoke emotions. In addition, he develops tools and methods that can facilitate emotion-driven design. Desmet has published his research in several journals, and presented his work at international platforms. He is a co-founder and executive board member of the International Design for Emotion Society, and scientific advisor for SusaGroup, an organization that facilitates design for meaningful experience processes.