Sonia M. Arteaga

Mobile system to motivate teenagers' physical activity

This paper reports a mobile persuasive application to motivate teenagers to start and continue being physically active. Being physically active can lead to reduced risks of having weight and cardiovascular problems; however efforts in this direction had variable success. Designing technology that will be engaging and motivating for teenagers requires an understanding of the factors that contribute to behavior adoption in teenagers. To understand these, we approach the design from several theoretical models: Theory of Planned Behavior, Theory of Meaning Behavior, and Personality Theory. We found that 1) Personality traits affect perceptions on physical activities and the usefulness of devices that motivate them; 2) Favored motivational phrases are universal across traits; 3) Those who tried our prototype was generally positive and stated that they would use it on their own; 5) The characteristics of games that are desired are: social or competitive, outdoor, simple to learn and with large variations.

Combating obesity trends in teenagers through persuasive mobile technology

Throughout the last decade, there has been an alarming increase in obesity prevalence among adults and teens throughout the world. Obesity has been found to increase the risk of developing diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and some cancers. Due to the many health risks associated with obesity, an increase in prevalence has also pressured health care systems and the finances of the individual. Our research proposes to decrease obesity prevalence in adults by motivating teens to become or continue being physically active so that they can continue these healthy lifestyles as adults. Our goal is to encourage long term adoption of physically active behaviors by introducing a motivating application running on a mobile device. We use the Technology Acceptance Model, the Theory of Planned Behavior, the Theory of Meaning Behavior, and the Big 5 Personality Theory to guide our design.

Low-cost accelerometry-based posture monitoring system for stroke survivors

This paper reports a low-cost autonomous wearable accelerometry-based posture monitoring system for stroke survivors. The hardware part of the system consists of monitoring devices, each of which comprises of a three-axial accelerometer and a beeper, LED light and vibrator to provide redundant modes of inappropriate posture warnings that would hopefully trigger self-correction. The inappropriate posture data are stored in an EEPROM. The software part of the system downloads, analyzes and presents the data in graphical format to enable a carer or therapist to quickly glance at the durations, frequency and locations of inappropriate postures.

Mobile games and design requirements to increase teenagers' physical activity

Participating in regular physical activity (PA) can help people maintain a healthy weight, and it reduces their risks of developing cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Unfortunately, PA declines during early adolescence, particularly in minority populations. This paper explores design requirements for mobile PA-based games to motivate Hispanic teenagers to exercise. We found that some personality traits are significantly correlated to preference for specific motivational phrases and that personality affects game preference. Our qualitative analysis shows that different body weights affect beliefs about PA and games. Design requirements identified from this study include multi-player capabilities, socializing, appropriate challenge level, and variety.

Camera-based pointing interface for mobile devices

As the applications delivered by cellular phones are becoming increasingly sophisticated, the importance of choosing an input strategy is also growing. Touch-screens can simplify navigation by far but the vast majority of phones on the market are not equipped with them. Cameras, on the other hand, are widespread even amongst low-end phones: In this paper we propose a vision-based pointing system that allows the user to control the pointers position by just waving a hand, with no need for additional hardware.

Persuasive mobile exercise companion for teenagers with weight management issues

Obesity is a grave problem in our society. A significant increase in prevalence within the last 20 years has resulted in greater mortality, increased stress on our healthcare system, and a decreased quality of life for people dealing with obesity and overweight issues. My dissertation concerns a mobile application that assists teenagers in leading physically active lifestyles to try and combat the risk of becoming obese or overweight as adults. I hope this research will prove to be a viable option to prevent or reduce the risk of obesity for teens so that they lead healthy lives. By reducing the risks of obesity and overweight problems, we also reduce the risk of these individuals developing debilitating diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

Upward Mobility for Underrepresented Students: A Model for a Cohort-Based Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science

CSin3 is a cohort-based, three-year computer science bachelors degree program that has increased graduation rates of traditionally underrepresented computer science students. A collaborative effort between a community college and a public university, CSin3 provides a clear pathway for upward socio-economic mobility into the high-paying technology industry. CSin3 students are 90% from traditionally underrepresented groups, 80% first-generation, 32% female, and have a three-year graduation rate of 71%, compared to a 22% four-year graduation rate for traditional computer science students. Upon graduation, CSin3 students score similarly on a standardized exam of computer science knowledge as compared to traditional students who graduate in 4 years or more. The first graduates had a job placement rate of 78% within two months of graduation, including positions at large technology companies like Apple, Salesforce, and Uber. By implementing a cohort-based learning community, a pre-defined course pathway, just-in-time academic and administrative support, comprehensive financial aid, and a focus on 21st century skills, the CSin3 program has demonstrated promising results in addressing the capacity, cost, quality, and diversity challenges present in the technology industry.

Designing an application to motivate teenagers' physical activity

In this paper we discuss design guidelines for game-based applications that motivate teenagers to do physical activity. We describe an application developed based on these guidelines and results from a user study we ran using this application. Finally, we discuss additional design guidelines that emerged from the user study. These guidelines include providing voiceover for text in the application, providing bonuses or rewards for accomplishing physical activity goals, and providing the functionality that let teenagers tailor the application to their physical activity needs. Future work will consist of improving the application based on the user study results and running a long-term study with the improved application.

Upward mobility for underrepresented students: a model for a cohort-based bachelor's degree in computer science

CSin3 is a cohort-based, three-year computer science bachelors degree program that has increased graduation rates of traditionally underrepresented computer science students. A collaborative effort between a community college and a public university, CSin3 provides a clear pathway for upward socio-economic mobility into the high-paying technology industry. CSin3 students are 90% from traditionally underrepresented groups, 80% first-generation, 32% female, and have a three-year graduation rate of 71%, compared to a 22% four-year graduation rate for traditional computer science students. Upon graduation, CSin3 students score similarly on a standardized exam of computer science knowledge as compared to traditional students who graduate in 4 years or more. The first graduates had a job placement rate of 78% within two months of graduation, including positions at large technology companies like Apple, Salesforce, and Uber. By implementing a cohort-based learning community, a pre-defined course pathway, just-in-time academic and administrative support, comprehensive financial aid, and a focus on 21st century skills, the CSin3 program has demonstrated promising results in addressing the capacity, cost, quality, and diversity challenges present in the technology industry.

Design Guidelines of Tools for Facilitating Blind People to Independently Format Their Documents

In professional and educational settings, a document’s presentation can be as important as its content. Thus, blind people often rely on sighted help for fear of having their documents treated dismissively or misinterpreted as lack of professionalism or education, by sighted readers when the documents do not meet presentation ‘standards’. Still, most work on helping blind people with word-processed documents focuses on the content rather than the formatting. Our work aims to enable the development of efficient tools to help blind people independently format their documents. We first sought to understand blind peoples’ experiences and issues with document formatting and sighted readers’ strategies and expectations regarding well-formatted documents. As a result, we compiled a set of guidelines for such tools and present them here.