Jv Vassilis-Javed Khan

Reconexp: a way to reduce the data loss of the experiencing sampling method

This paper presents Reconexp, a diary method supported by a distributed application, which partly runs on a mobile device and partly on a website, enabling us to survey user attitudes, experiences and requirements in field studies. Reconexp combines aspects of the Experience Sampling Method and the Day Reconstruction Method aiming to reduce data loss, improve data quality and reduce burden put upon participants. We discuss our first experiences of using this method in the context of a study of communication needs of working parents with young children.

Evaluation of a pervasive awareness system designed for busy parents

Does pervasive technology have a role to play in supporting the communication of busy couples? Especially when they are already living together and already have a high degree of awareness of each others rhythms of daily life, their whereabouts and needs? A two week long field study of an awareness system allowed eight working couples to automatically exchange place, activity and calendar information as well as messages and photos. Data analysis provides both qualitative and quantitative evidence which suggest strongly that such a system can provide support for availability, coordination, reassurance and affection for this group. Findings which inform the design of such systems are: the need for transitions in places instead of location information to support coordination, the two tracks of daily communication of busy parents (reassurance and emergency) and usability barriers in current mobile applications which prevent this group from engaging in photo sharing. The contexts and unexpected uses that participants found in the system are described in detail.

On the role of awareness systems for supporting parent involvement in young children’s schooling

This paper reports on an investigation of how Awareness Systems can support communication between busy parents and young children at school. The study involved the deployment and test of a rudimentary awareness system so that surveying opinions and wishes regarding this type of technology would be grounded upon concrete experiences. The prototype was installed in a classroom for two weeks and connected five families with their children. Overall, parents appreciated receiving awareness information and did not experience it as an undesirable distraction. Both they and their children did not experience privacy problems. They raised concerns about the possibility of children becoming more dependent upon their parents from such technology and stated they would not want to receive information that they would not be able to react upon.

WaveTrace: Motion Matching Input using Wrist-Worn Motion Sensors

We present WaveTrace, a novel interaction technique based on selection by motion matching. In motion matching systems, targets move continuously in a singular and pre-defined path -- users interact with these by performing a synchronous bodily movement that matches the movement of one of the targets. Unlike previous work which tracks user input through optical systems, WaveTrace is arguably the first motion matching technique to rely on motion data from inertial measurement units readily available in many wrist-worn wearable devices such as smart watches. To evaluate the technique, we conducted a user study in which we varied: hand; degrees of visual angle; target speed; and number of concurrent targets. Preliminary results indicate that the technique supports up to eight concurrent targets; and that participants could select targets moving at speeds between 180 and 270/s (mean acquisition time of 2237ms, and average success rate of 91%).

Expected information needs of parents for pervasive awareness systems

This paper examines the communication needs of busy parents that can be served by awareness systems: systems supporting a continuous and semi-automated flow of information about the activities of communicating individuals. We report an online survey involving 69 participants. This survey focused on whether the types of information offered by awareness systems as these are introduced in current research literature are appreciated by busy parents. The results show a) that information items that allow personalization and expressing intentionality are more desired than those than low granularity and automatically sensed information that is easy to collect automatically b) the attitudes regarding the information that people wish to share about themselves is almost identical to what they wish to know of their partners and c) survey methods focusing on information do not need to differentiate between the direction of information flow or whether this is symmetric, since people report almost identical preferences.

Sampling and Reconstructing User Experience

The Experience Sampling and Reconstruction ESRM method is a research method suitable for user studies conducted in situ that is needed for the design and evaluation of ambient intelligence technologies. ESRM is a diary method supported by a distributed application, Reconexp, which runs on a mobile device and a website, enabling surveying user attitudes, experiences, and requirements in field studies. ESRM combines aspects of the Experience Sampling Method and the Day Reconstruction Method aiming to reduce data loss, improve data quality, and reduce burden put upon participants. The authors present a case study of using this method in the context of a study of communication needs of working parents with young children. Requirements for future developments of the tool and the method are discussed.

An experience sampling study into awareness needs of busy families

We report an investigation into the communication needs of working parents pertaining to awareness of each others whereabouts and activities. Twenty working parents took part in an experience sampling study for a period of one week and in follow up interviews. Analysis of participant responses shows that working parents can benefit from automatically updated information relating to availability of each other through the day, support for micro-coordination especially surrounding dinner time and childrens activities and getting reassurance regarding the well being of the family. Analyzing the situational variations of information needs we find that parents seek their partners communication availability during the day, require information to coordinate evening tasks and are prone to exchange information at home than at work.

Crowdsourcing User and Design Research

Crowdsourcing can be defined as a task, which is usually performed by an employee, that is given out as an open call to a crowd of users to be completed. Although crowdsourcing has been growing in recent years, its application to design research and education has only scratched the surface of its potential. In this chapter we first introduce the different types of crowdsourcing. Then, following the typical design cycle we present examples from literature and cases from an educational setting of how crowdsourcing can support designers. Based on these examples we provide a list of tips for utilizing crowdsourcing for design and user research activities.

Interactive Advertisements in an IoT Era

The Internet has profoundly changed the nature of ads by making them interactive. We are currently observing an evolution to the Internet of Things (IoT) and it is inevitable that interaction designers will utilize IoT for creating a new ilk of interactive ads. In this paper, we present evidence that the attitude towards a TV ad interacting with a robot is positive when compared to the absence of interaction. Furthermore, we sketch the interaction space of TV ads and generally TV content with smart objects.

On the use of pervasive computing to support patients with obsessive compulsive disorder

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a psychiatric disorder affecting 2% to 3% of world population. Patients having this disorder engage in repetitive and discomforting behaviors usually linked to controlling or cleaning. The potential of technical solutions trying to support both patients and therapists has been to a limited extent explored with some encouraging results. However, the use of a mobile phone application has not yet been explored. We present a study of a distributed application, partly running on mobile phone and partly on a website, with four patients suffering from OCD and their therapist. Our qualitative evaluation yields encouraging conclusions for practitioners and developers of such applications.