· · · Institutional Repository

Being in touch, and being aware of the people in one’s social network strongly contributes to one’s sense of social well-being. As communication technology has become more ubiquitous, it is possible to always be in touch with friends and relatives in the periphery of one’s attention, e.g. through instant messaging and online social networks. This research investigated the effect of such social information on people’s sense of connectedness. Also, it was studied how such communication application can be integrated into the fabric of our everyday life as awareness systems. It was found that despite the subtlety, mediated social awareness has a measurable effect on social connectedness. Also, the findings strongly suggest that ambiguity in social cues is a strong enabler of the feeling of being connected. These findings may help designers of social network applications and products to more effectively design for increased social connectedness.

This graduation project explored the design and application of interactive tangible products as extension of existing social media. Products called awareness systems are developed to help people create a peripheral awareness of each others’ activities, context or status. Awareness systems aim to bridge the gap between face-to-face communication and the current mediated communication. Awareness systems have been mainly developed working standalone and to provide communication between intimate socials. When linked to an existing social networking site (SNS), awareness systems could possibly facilitate communication within a network of extended socials, which were not yet addressed in literature. This formulated the following research question: How can awareness systems applied to social networking sites make a network of extended socials feel more connected? During this project Facebook was chosen as a platform for intervention. FACEBOOK USER INVESTIGATION In order to develop a design, a sense of motives and behavior of Facebook users was required. Therefore semi-structured interviews with six Facebook users were conducted from which two types of Facebook use were identified: * The use by which personal life is extensively shared on Facebook: exhibitionism. * The use by which the life of others is being monitored: voyeurism. Both can be specified by being productive or consumptive; while being productive, content is provided to the SNS. FIRST DESIGN PHASE Several ideas were generated within the design space defined by the current Facebook use, goals of the assignment and findings from literature. One of the ideas was about sharing daily life with the social network by the use of sound; samples of sound should reveal information about the location and activities of a specific member. From a metaphor, illustrating the ‘voyeurism’ Facebook use, the functioning of the design was specified: * Exhibitionism: enabling the user to record and instantly share a 5 second sample of sound. When keeping this function active it will automatically record and share samples at a fixed interval. To avoid privacy issues a percentage of the sample can be scrambled with noise. * Voyeurism: enabling the user to playback samples shared by the social network. The design was build into two working prototypes and tested in a field setup. FIRST SERIES OF TESTS The goal of the first series of tests was to find out how participants are using the prototype, what usability problems they are facing and how the prototype is contributing to a feel of connectedness between the different users. The results should serve as input during the second design phase. Two tests, lasting about a week, were conducted with the participation of two prototype users and one non-device user each test. Each group consisted of extended socials connected through Facebook. Before and after the test the device using participants had to complete the overall connectedness questionnaire (OC-Q ) (van Bel et al., 2009) and the affective benefits and costs of communication questionnaire (ABC-Q) (IJsselsteijn et al., 2009). The test was concluded with a guided conversation. The non-device using participants were only subject of a guided conversation afterwards. The main findings were: * Participants were using the device to record and share specific sounds intended to be humoristic and easy accessible. * Although the samples were shared with the social network the communication between device users was considered and mainly used as a public 1:1 communication. * Non-device users marked the samples as an attempt of the others to share some of their surroundings or something humoristic and used them as another way to get insight in the life of others. Non-device users did not comment on the samples. SECOND DESIGN PHASE Due to the public 1:1 communication and lack of participation by non-device users; part of the research domain, a network of extended socials, was not covered yet. Therefore the goal of the second design phase was to have the non-device users to “participate” in the use of the device. Therefore the design was modified to communicate activities on Facebook regarding the shared samples. This should create awareness of non-device users and change the behavior/sharing of device users. Next to this modification also shortcomings in “product properties” noticed during the tests were improved. The design was build into three interactive prototypes. SECOND SERIES OF TESTS The goal of the second series of tests was to find out how the participants (including non-device users) are using the prototype, how the prototype is contributing to (a feel of) connectedness and how this is experienced between the different users. Three one week lasting tests were conducted with the participation of three prototype users and one non-device user each test. Each group consisted of extended socials connected through Facebook. Before and after the test the device using participants had to complete the inclusion of other in self scale (Aron et al., 1992) and the ABC-Q. The test was concluded with a guided conversation. The non-device users were only subject of a guided conversation afterwards. CONCLUSION The main findings of the second series of tests resulted in the conclusion of this project: * Samples of a rich medium (sound), containing contextual cues, shared on a SNS create a sense of involvement and sharing (van Bel et al., 2009) and contribute to the feel of connectedness of the (non-device using) audience. * Feedback about the activities concerning ones shared samples on the SNS create social awareness (IJselsteijn et al., 2009) of the audience and contribute to the feeling of connectedness of the device users. * A lack of response by the audience one is aware of could lead to a negative appraisal of the social bond(s) (van Bel et al., 2009) and negatively contribute to the feeling of connectedness of the device users. * Possible appearance of the samples on the SNS results in an increased and continuous awareness of the device users. * Application of an awareness system, allowing asynchronous communication by means of a rich medium (sound), to a SNS provides another means to share experiences and contributes to the feeling of connectedness within a group of extended socials.

Designing computing systems for frontline firefighting is an open challenge. As of today, little computing support exists for such hazardous environments and designers struggle to build appropriate systems that fit the complex configuration on the frontline. Following Christopher Alexander’s understanding, design is about producing living transformations of existing configurations, it requires a thorough understanding of the situation on-site. Alexander introduces pattern languages as a means to describe existing configurations and to make them accessible for design, to link ethnography and design. This thesis therefore develops a pattern language of firefighters’ activities at the frontline to transform the existing practice into a design space for computing support. Grounded theory, as a qualitative method to identify patterns in empirical data, and action research, as a framework that allows studying the interaction between new technologies and existing practice, solidify the methodology of pattern research and are applied to conduct and analyze workshops with French and German firefighters at professional training facilities. Workshops comprise the observation of existing practice, the active participation in firefighting exercises and the introduction of novel artifacts. Linked up as a pattern language, 16 patterns describe the configuration of frontline firefighting. The patterns detail how firefighters organize the division of roles and tasks, how they deal with information in a dynamic environment, how they form a social binding, improvise, provide safety and prepare their work. While similar individual patterns have been described for firefighting and other high reliability professions, the pattern language, beyond these aspects, provides an integrated perspective on the frontline work; it allows developers to reflect technological concepts and supports the participatory design process of ubiquitous computing systems.

The aim of this thesis is to explore design directions to minimize a food wastage problem in western domestic kitchens. Central to the thesis is an understanding of people‟s behavior towards the food waste phenomenon. Three interconnected studies and one design project are included. In Study I, 18 participants were interviewed to explore their perceptions and attitudes towards food waste, revealing the most wasted food types and reasons for food wastage. The findings of Study I are clustered under four phases of food handling: acquisition, preparation, consumption and storage. Study II comprised a generative session with three users and two designers, devised to explore latent and tacit knowledge regarding food wastage. Study II resulted in user-generated ideas for minimizing food waste, which were analyzed so as to reveal possible design directions. From these results, a set of criteria for a "perfect‟ kitchen appliance, which could minimize food waste, was drawn-up. The design project took the research findings of Study I and II and devised a collection of design concepts as possible ways to help reduce domestic food waste. Two concepts – Philips Dispense and Canvas - are taken further because they relate to the most wasted food types: "bread‟ and "vegetables and fruits‟. In Study III, Philips Dispense and Canvas were evaluated with a questionnaire. According to the results, in households containing busy couples without children, Philips Dispense is valued highest (it takes the food waste responsibility away from users) whereas Philips Canvas was valued lower (it gives feedback on current stocks and persuades homeowners not to waste food).

This graduation project is one of two from Delft University of Technology that were initiated with the User Experience (UX) Research Group at Samsung Electronics to address the role of consumer electronics (CE) in more sustainable consumption and behavior for young professionals. This project started with a strong position on how to approach designing for sustainability with regards to consumer electronics and how the problem should be defined. Time and care was taken to focus on improving social quality of life and develop a long-term vision on how consumer electronics can play a role in helping users live more sustainable lives. A set of Design Guidelines were refined in the process of developing a concept, Fog. With a vision of a healthy evolution of technology for people, the Design Guidelines show how the vision is translated to more tangible product qualities. The Fog concept was an example of how a design can allow space for disconnection by treating the digital connections with care, and not as an addiction to solve. It allowed for a more sensitive way of dealing with overload, that can be naturally incorporated by users with the help of CE. The web prototype, Protofog, was built to enable users to incorporate Fog in their everyday communications with chosen partners. The test yielded valuable feedback for evaluating the potential of Fog. Protofog also showed that following the Design Guidelines can yield immediate changes in polite expectations, and it gave directions for how future development in hardware and software can better support it. The process and deliverables as a whole showed how the approach increased user-centered sustainable value, that in turn gives worth to the CE production process.

Signet has two core components that aim at supporting the user in making safe and diverse password choices. By choosing image hints automatically, the user does not need to be burdened with unlimited possibilities for hinting. With gesture recognition and length (i.e. number of strokes) guidance, the effort for precision encoding/recall is also significantly reduced. Drawing on Signet also nods at the increasing popularity of touchscreen devices and answers the frustration that is precision typing something complex on touchscreens. Images work as if they were meant to hide a message waiting for the user to uncover and use, thus making them a personal and meaningful cryptography solution. Spending time analyzing allows for deeper memory encoding and the multiple images can have a pleasurable surprise effect in users. All image hint concepts have also proven the power of visual memory in remembering. One of the key to the success of Signet is the combination of visual recall and recognition features in a lightweight manner. Signet also embraces the reality of authentication nowadays. Most passwords are for Internet services and therefore there is no hesitation in relying on a solution that uses the power of cloud computing for guiding the user who still keeps privacy under control.

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is the most commonly diagnosed developmental disorder, affecting between 3 to 5 percent of children worldwide. Characteristics of ADHD are hyperactivity, inattention, impulsiveness and lack of self-control. Current research shows an increased interest in the perception of time in children with ADHD and some believe it is the ground on which the characteristics build. Children with ADHD can experience problems at school as well as in social settings because they are easily distracted and have difficulty focusing on one task or a conversation. For a child with ADHD to be able to adjust its behaviour, it needs almost constant feedback and encouragement from caregivers. Next to medical treatment, behavioural therapy is available to make the symptoms less disruptive. It is believed to only work as it provides motivation to the child as the child does have the skills but has difficulty showing it. Current products for children with ADHD lack as these do not provide this much needed motivation. The required feedback is often sent too late while children with ADHD need feedback on their behaviour at the point of performance, on the spot. A Personal Informatics system, a tool that collects and displays personal data for the purpose of self-reflection and self-monitoring, can support children with ADHD. By collection personal information about their behaviour and presenting information on it to children to reflect upon, they can increase their self-awareness and adjust their behaviour accordingly. Observing children with ADHD at school and interviewing them, their parents and teachers showed the need for support in classes they work independently. Teacher nor the child itself is able to provide the motivation needed and together with their uncertainty about time this leaves them inattentive for large periods of time. The designed bracelet offers a Personal Informatics system which presents information on time and attention to increase on-task behaviour. The bracelet is worn during the day and used in classes with independent work. Time is presented, showing the child how much time is left and creating a reminder to work. When the child gets distracted, his or her amount of movement will increase. An accelerometer inside the device measures the movement of the non-dominant wrist and gives a signal as soon as the child shows signs of inattention. First stopping the distracting allows children to reflect on what they should be doing. To allow deeper reflection, colours show after class how well the child did. The child is motivated to improve its behaviour as it influence the score shown on the bracelet. These different kinds of reflection complement each other and support self-awareness. Where the bracelet provides options for short-term reflection, an additional software program at home allows more long-term reflection. A prototype to test the reflection on presented information is made. Three children participated and were able to reflect on their own behaviour using the device. They enjoyed wearing and using it and were motivated to change their behaviour in order to get a good score. The design of this device shows what is possible to achieve for children with ADHD by using a Personal Informatics system. Hopefully this project works as an inspiration for other designers to use tools like this more often for similar target groups as it can support them greatly.

Thanks to advances in technology a time has arrived where it is possible to generate energy by virtually everyone for a competitive price. To produce energy on a small scale, fossil fuels are unattractive because energy can be extracted from them more efficiently on a larger scale. For technologies such as solar photovoltaic panels, there is no scale limitation. For that reason alone, solar panels are an attractive means to generate energy for households. Nevertheless, experts or people with good background knowledge are needed to install and run such an energy production facility at home. So for laymen users without ‘special’ knowledge, the idea of personal energy production might not be very appealing. I believe that in order to establish a democracy in the energy market every user in the system should be able to become an active player and use technologies to generate energy. Is such a change in ‘users’ role’ easy to achieve? In the current energy market, ‘not’! Energy as medium is very abstract and does not carry any tangible form and is therefore very hard to relate to a tangible action. In order to motivate people to take an active role in producing and using it, I think the way and the form we use it, should have more relation with human nature. In order to do that, first the current understanding regarding ‘energy production and consumption’ of users should be explored.The so called ‘prosumer’ is introduced, which combines producer and consumer in one user. In this project, after a thorough exploration of the current place of the user in the energy market, I create a concept- which I name Ampul- that aims to connect personal or small-scale energy production with people’s domestic environment in a meaningful and natural manner. The Concept House1, which was built in Heijplaat, Rotterdam under a European founded project to explore the user perception, involvement, understanding and acceptance of newly introduced sustainable technologies, is used as a context to test the created concept with actual users.

For this research different experiments were conducted that indicate that people make rocking and rolling movements with a pen when they feel stressed; that when nervous movements are counteracted this results in more control over a situation; and that people prefer objects with moving parts when they are stressed. Embedding sensors in a pen could offer unobtrusive means to detect stress and appropriate feedback could support users in dealing with stress. Given these findings a pen was developed that enables the previously described behaviors. The pen registers the movements to detect whether the user feels stressed. With infrequent movements, parts of the pen are loose and with increased movements these parts are gradually fixed resulting in less freedom of movement for these parts. This type of feedback is considered as inherent because the reaction of the product is directly coupled to the actions of the user and therefore requires less cognitive burden. The pen was evaluated in an experiment and results indicate that users who received inherent feedback on their behavior had a lower heart rate than users that did not receive feedback. Furthermore, it appeared that the first group was not aware of the feedback. This could mean that when products are designed to reduce short-term stress they should provide feedback that directly affects behavior instead of addressing the cognitive skills of the user. Thereby products can reduce stress in a subconscious and unobtrusive way.

This report describes the process of the graduation project of Xu Chen. The project was carried out for Philips Consumer Lifestyle Netherlands on TA2 project and under supervision of the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering at the Delft University of Technology. TA2, Together Anytime, Together Anywhere, is a large integrated multimedia project funded by European Union FP7. The main task of this graduation project is to look into the human factors in ambient intelligence, namely strategic design for “Connected Lobby” on how to enhance family “togetherness” while taking into account of people’s privacy. This thesis focused especially on investigating on the possibility of balancing “togetherness” and “privacy” through computer-mediated communication. A new design approach was explored in the project to guide the strategic product planning process from expressing user’s latent experience by combining semantic differential scaling (SDS) experiment into user research. A context model was generated, providing the possibility of balancing “togetherness” and “privacy” through three factors in seven different usage contexts. A design part followed the exploratory phase. A strategic design guideline on control scheme, namely how to use ambient awareness system to trigger people to communicate was generated. The concept of “smart awareness assistant” was developed and a renewed “Connected Lobby” interface was designed and tested. The “smart awareness assistant” could trigger the family members to share the meaningful moment with each other at the right time, and filter the unwanted information exchange when the user is not available to communicate, which could enhance family “togetherness” through balancing “awareness” and “privacy”.

An explorative study into elegant designs for connectedness. Three different social profiles are selected based on characteristic social behaviours, norms and values. For these three profiles three conceptual designs are developed and prototyped.

In the near future, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol possibly wants to open a terminal that will take care of the airport handling process in a sustainable, innovative and user-friendly way. Moreover, the passengers and employees should be made aware, in a pleasant way, of the sustainable nature of the airport handling process of this terminal. The main research question for this graduation project is: “How can an airport handling process become more sustainable; and how can passengers experience these sustainable improvements in a positive way, as a part of their activity? This project has resulted in a mixture of sustainable concepts, which are applied in a fictive terminal design. Every concept that is applied in this ‘green terminal’ building is sustainable, user-friendly and can be experienced by the passengers. Most concepts are focussed on energy efficiency, health & wellbeing and sustainable water consumption. All concepts contribute to a comfortable and healthy terminal concept.

People from diverse professions and industries use professional lighting products. However, the descriptions of the professional lighting products are focusing on the technical information of each product which needs a certain level of the lighting design knowledge and experience to understand. Therefore, there are some people who cannot fully understand this type of description, and their product selection experience cannot be satisfactory. This graduation project was improving those people’s lighting product selection experience by designing a tool for those people, and in order to improve their lighting product selection experience, a new tool was developed. The studies and researches have been conducted during the project, in which the users’ needs and desires were unveiled and the problems of the current situation were found. To show the opportunity to improve and solve the current situation and problems, the concept of Lighting Effect Product Selector was developed. Through the concept evaluation, it was confirmed that the application is helpful in guiding the target users’ lighting product selection processes, and the application has the possibility to increase the target users’ lighting product selection experience. Therefore, the Lighting Effect Product Selector can be used as a starting point of developing more products and researches to increase the users’ better product selection experience.

This project explored the application of computer vision technology in a social game to develop a web-based photo-bombing game for the HITLab NZ. I performed a literature research to find out more about game design and computer vision methods. Some subjects covered were the psychological background of pranks and social games. My technology research focused on varieties of computer vision to be able to recognise players in uploaded photos. Furthermore, I used the outcomes of a context mapping session with four potential users to develop an interaction vision and define requirements for a successful game. My main conclusions were that social gameplay especially was a major opportunity to include in my game, and that many different computer vision methods have different benefits and disadvantages that should be further explored before incorporating one in my design. This exploration was executed using an evolutionary design method and a design framework based on several elements of game design. Brainstorming sessions and a morphological chart led to game mechanisms that explored the idea scenarios regarding social play and the fulfilment of quests, and a technological development based on QR codes and face recognition. The final design combined both idea scenarios by offering social quests, and used face recognition as identification method. The game was developed and explained in more detail using the game design framework and various diagrams: a function diagram explaining the input, output, and processes of player, website, and servers; and a system diagram to connect the functions and interactions to form a player-friendly interface. Because of technological limitations regarding player identification found in the game development, the final user test focused on the gameplay and user experience compared to my vision and expectations. I tested the enjoyment level, balance, player retention, and tourist reactions. I found that my test persons were reluctant to cross social boundaries for more elaborate photo-bombing quests. They felt that, in theory, the game sounded like an amazing way to spend some spare time on holiday, almost like a treasure hunt. In practice, however, they hardly got round to playing it. My final recommendations were to review the choice of a broad target group and to pay a lot of attention to the implementation of the game, so it becomes socially accepted. More importantly, the success of the game depends heavily on future computer vision developments: as it stands right now, the methods I explored are not reliable enough.

This thesis explores how to make appliances, such as thermostats, televisions and microwave ovens, easier to program. It does so by looking at person-product interaction as a type of collaborative planning dialogues. The user and product must âtalkâ to each other, engaging in a collaborative dialogue that can lead to a shared plan concerning their mutually held beliefs and goals. The design challenge discussed in this thesis centers on the creation of product interfaces that facilitate collaborative person-product planning. In particular, a product interface should capitalize on the complementary strengths of the person and product: the product's ability to interpret user actions and goals and make efficient plans to achieve them, and the person's knowledge of what he or she wants to do. This goal is captured in the Help Me Help You (HMHY) principle, namely that a programmable product interface needs to be designed to help the user to better help the product know what the user wants to do, and thus better able to help the user. In other words, programmable appliance interfaces need to be designed to support person-product collaboration. The research question addressed in this thesis is how to develop a practical design method for supporting person-product collaboration from existing models of collaboration discourse. The design research in this thesis focused on the 'Some Things To Say (SenSay)' a modular adaptive menu derived from task models using collaborative discourse theory. The questions of how to design the SenSay from the theory and how people actually use it to get things done, as well as new methods for exploring and evaluating SenSay design, are all addressed across the different chapters of this thesis.

Information poverty cannot be addressed by simply giving away computers and installing internet connections in rural areas. What is really needed is to offer rural users relevant, personalized information that enables them to make positive changes in their daily lives, rather than give them the type of information that is typically available via public internet sites. ICT should be viewed as a tool, and not as the solution to building knowledge-based societies. ICT encompasses the full range of information and communication technologies, including radio, television and print media as well as the ever-expanding array of computer hardware and software, telecom devices, internet and portable digital media. To build a knowledge-based society, many organizations and enterprises have given rise to a range of innovative projects and services. These innovative projects attempt to use ICT to enable rural users to access relevant information services with a view to ultimately reducing information poverty. Where information poverty can be understood as a lack of knowledge to make decisions to improve wellbeing in terms of economic and social development. Information services have been offered in crosscutting sectors such as education, e-governance, agriculture, and healthcare. Reducing information poverty through the use of ICT to improve user wellbeing is a major challenge for governmental and non-governmental organizations alike. Several new media ICT interventions such as Telecenters that offer e-services in domains such as agriculture, healthcare, and education have recently been deployed in India. Despite huge investment in recent efforts to address information poverty via new media ICT interventions, the results still do not make a convincing case for solving the information poverty problem. Consequently, there is still an information gap between rural users and the information offered via ICT interventions. The case study evaluation of ICT interventions deployed in India (Chapter 2) indicated that users have still not adopted the majority of these interventions. The low adoption level of ICT interventions could be attributed to the following key issues: a. The information content offered through the ICT interventions such as, telecenters is often found to be too general to be useful for rural users, and is inadequately disseminated. Existing ICT interventions are focused on introducing new applications and technologies to the rural market rather than on having a concrete understanding of user needs and the social environment. The term social environment of an individual can be understood as the culture that he or she was educated and/or lives in, and the people and institutions with whom the person interacts. The information offered via the ICT interventions on a particular topic, such as healthcare or agriculture, does not often take into consideration the existing information needs, daily practices, and the needs of the social environment of the rural communities. As a consequence, rural users do not see that the information given has any added value in their life. b. The sustainability of ICT interventions in a rural context is dependent on knowledge from several scientific disciplines such as, for example, social science for understanding societal issues at community and individual level; computer science for developing the software and hardware of an interactive device; industrial design for designing the user-interface and for usability testing; marketing for addressing issues of economic sustainability and technology adoption. However, the current development approaches are often dominated by a single discipline, namely - the technology development groups. This approach often leads to technology-centered development. Recent literature on ICT development discusses the need for a developmental framework to achieve sustainable ICT solutions (Chapter 3). As an answer to this call, several frameworks have recently been proposed by researchers and organizations involved in promoting ICT for rural development. These frameworks focus mainly on organizational issues, such as how an organization can improve its efforts regarding the design and implementation of ICT interventions in developing countries. However, none of the ICT development frameworks have taken a bottom-up approach, where it is the users who drive the problems and solutions. In particular, these frameworks fail to incorporate user needs, the socio-cultural context, and technological viability issues in the early development phase. Design can play a critical role towards developing a framework to support ICT development for rural communities. Design can address the developmental issues towards holistically improving information dissemination via ICT interventions, thereby achieving a high rate of adoption. Towards proposing a design framework for developing ICT products and services for rural development, this thesis dealt with finding the answers to the following two research challenges: The first research challenge was to incorporate knowledge from multiple disciplines in the user-centered design approach to develop sustainable ICT interventions. To meet this objective, a case study analysis was first conducted to understand where existing ICT development approaches succeed or fail (see Chapter 2). The findings from the case study analysis provided requirements for the design framework to support ICT development for rural communities. Based on the requirement for the framework, this thesis put forward a design framework that amalgamates theories from multiple disciplines such as social sciences, computer science, industrial design and marketing management, and involves different stakeholders to support the main stages in the user-centered development process (see Chapter 3). The design framework consists of two main components: Component A includes the user-centered phases of the design cycle. The three stages of the usercentered development process in the proposed design framework have been termed: Exploratory Research, Creative Design Research, and Evaluative Research. Component B, the theoretical framework, explains the theories from multiple disciplines that have been adapted to guide the development process followed in component A. Both these components were interlinked with each other where component B provided the theoretical foundation to the various stages in the user-centered process as defined in component A (see Chapter 3). The second research challenge was to design and develop ICT interventions for socially complex environments in order to improve information dissemination and increase user-adoption of ICT intervention. As a development case, an ICT intervention focusing on disseminating primary health information to rural women was developed by following the proposed design framework. Following the exploratory phase of the design framework, field studies were then conducted in Gujarat, India. The purpose of the field studies was to obtain baseline data on user needs and to understand the socio-cultural norms of rural women surrounding their health practices, and to investigate the knowledge level of rural women relating to menses and maternal health (see Chapter 4). Chapter 4 describes the exploratory research phase of the proposed design framework. This phase included two studies (1 and 2) conducted with the baseline group (rural women) and potential stakeholders in the pilot villages of Gujarat, India. The studies were conducted to identify the existing knowledge level (baseline survey) and the social beliefs and practices of rural women relating to menses and maternal health. The theory of planned behavior was adopted in the exploratory stage as a means to understand the social norms and user needs for developing an ICT intervention. The questionnaire used was based on the three factors of the theory of planned behavior that affect human action: Attitude toward the Behavior, Subjective Norm, and Perceived Behavioral Control. The results from studies 1 and 2 indicated that the knowledge level of rural women on matters relating to menses and maternal health was low. The results illustrate that there exist social beliefs and health practices that inhibit the acceptance of good health practices relating to menses and maternal health. We concluded from the exploratory stage that, in order to improve the knowledge level of rural women, the social beliefs and practices as identified need to be positively shaped. This implies that in ICT development, besides understanding the social beliefs and attitudes of the target user group, it is critical to incorporate them in the design of nformation content and the physical environment. The PHIS was developed as a part of the creative design phase of the proposed design framework (Chapter 5). The PHIS design integrates theories from multiple disciplines, such as social cues from persuasive technology, and the theory of planned behavior for shaping the social beliefs and health practices of rural women. Concept 1 of the PHIS was developed on the basis of the design requirements obtained in the exploratory phase (Chapter 4). The design and development process employed persuasive technology in designing information communication strategies, the physical environment, and the physical system design of the PHIS. The role of persuasive technology was to shape existing social norms via an interactive system and to motivate the rural women to have a high behavior intention, thereby increasing their perceived behavior control. The PHIS used a computer as a tool, a medium, and a social actor to create a persuasive interactive experience for the rural women to shape their social beliefs. Social cues from persuasive technology such as physical cues, language cues, psychological cues, social dynamics, and social roles were applied in the PHIS for shaping social beliefs and the health attitude of rural women in India. Studies 3 & 4 were conducted to evaluate the first concept of the PHIS. Firstly, an initial impact study (study 3) was conducted to compare user engagement between the PHIS (village B) and the local NGO-health information system (village A). Results from the comparative study reported an increase in user engagement with the PHIS compared with the NGO health system (see Chapter 5). The results showed an increase in the number of revisits and in the number of questions asked by the rural women using the PHIS compared with the NGO system. Secondly, an evaluative study (study 4) was conducted to evaluate the PHIS on the basis of Rogers innovation attributes from diffusion theory. Feedback from rural women was collected against four product innovation attributes: Relative, Advantage, Compatibility, Complexity, and Observability. The women using the PHIS reported high values against the four innovation attributes. For example, the PHIS gave them privacy and the freedom to access health information. Therefore, the rural women ranked it high on the “relative advantage” attribute compared with the NGO system. We concluded from studies 3 & 4 that applying social cues from persuasive technology in designing the form, content and interaction of the PHIS can positively shape the social beliefs of the users. For example, to incorporate psychological cues from persuasive technology in the PowerPoint slides, three animated characters representing local identities were used to convey the relevant messages. These characters represented the main characters found in the village community, and included (a) a teenage girl for discussing menses issues; (b) a married woman for discussing maternal issues; and (c) a doctor for answering the queries. Traditional folk music and puppet shows were used to convey the stories woven around these characters. In all six categories, the three characters presented existing beliefs through cases and discussed their effects rationally. It can be concluded from the results that by offering belief-based content the health information dissemination process can be improved and hence user engagement. The findings from the creative design phase informed the design of Concept 2 of the proposed ICT intervention termed the Mobile Persuasive Health Information System (MPHIS) (see Chapter 6). Concept 2, the MPHIS was designed to make the PHIS mobile and enhance social interaction by using traditional metaphors in the user interface design. The results from the MPHIS evaluative study (Study 5) illustrated increased social interaction as a result of enhanced product engagement, product attachment, and increased community decision-making. As a consequence of increased social interaction, sensitive health information relating to menses and maternal health was easily disseminated to the rural women. The reflection of traditional metaphors on design reduced the technology barrier prevalent among rural women, and therefore increased their engagement when interacting with the MPHIS. Furthermore, because the MPHIS was mobile, rural women from remote villages could also access the system, which was previously not possible with the PHIS. We concluded from Study 5 that by adapting traditional metaphors to design the Tangible User Interface (TUI), a personalized relationship between the interactive system and the user can be developed. This allows even those users with limited exposure to technology to access the relevant information independently. As part of the evaluative research, we measured the impact of the PHIS intervention on the knowledge level and health practices relating to menses and maternal health of rural women. In this thesis, an increase in knowledge level and the positive change in heath practices among rural women has been considered to be an indicator of a high rate of adoption of the PHIS intervention (see Chapter 3). In order to investigate the rate of PHIS adoption, a longitudinal study (Study 6) was conducted for sixteen months (see Chapter 7). The purpose of this study was to investigate the changes in the knowledge level of rural women and in their health practices relating to maternal health and menstruation between the village in which the women received no intervention (baseline group) and the village in which women received the PHIS intervention (intervention group). The results from Study 6 between the baseline group and intervention group indicated the difference in knowledge level of rural women who did and did not receive the intervention. The results from the longitudinal study indicated that the PHIS intervention had a positive impact on improving the knowledge level of rural women and brought about positive changes in their health practices. The data from the control group indicated that the improvement in knowledge level determined from the comparison between the intervention and baseline groups was not influenced by any external factors. The results from the longitudinal study indicate a positive impact of the PHIS intervention in improving the knowledge level of rural women. The follow-up observation conducted by the PHIS operators and community health workers revealed positive changes in the daily health practices of rural women. These changes were mainly observed in the disposal of menstrual cloths, maintaining personal hygiene, nutritional habits and delivery practices. For example, after the PHIS intervention, the women learned that it was possible to burn used cloths in their backyard. It was observed that (n=82/120) rural women adopted this new practice. Previously the used cloth had been stored in an unhygienic place and was not dried in the open in the sun because rural women did not understand that menstruation was simply a normal biological process. After accessing health information from the PHIS, (n=42/120) rural women reported that they changed the cotton cloths every two months, and that they dried them in the sun to sterilize them. These results could be attributed to the fact that the content was dynamically updated by the operators in accordance with the information needs and existing health practices of the rural women. The results from Study 6 lead to the conclusion that the necessary information relating to personal health that is consistently reinforced and is in compliance with existing social beliefs and practices may lead to a change in health-related practices. Disseminating information specifically designed for women, and through an intervention that engages them to interact in groups to discuss their personal health issues, may lead to positive changes in their health practices. Additionally, we conclude that information that directly adds value to the participant’s daily life may have a positive influence on the rate of adoption of ICT intervention. Key findings and implications from the various studies conducted during this research are reported on in Chapter 8 which discusses in particular the relevance of organizing multi-disciplinary collaboration in the design process of ICT development, the need to investigate existing social beliefs and practices, and issues surrounding stakeholder involvement and capacity development in ICT interventions. I have made an attempt with this thesis to demonstrate the strength of industrial design as a discipline to address socially complex problems in the rural context. In order to shape the social beliefs and health practices of rural women, two persuasive health information systems were developed by following the proposed design framework. However, I am aware of the fact that it is too soon to generalize or to judge the reliability of this framework in terms of guiding user-centered ICT development. The design framework still needs to be rigorously tested when designing other ICT projects deployed in a rural context, such as e-governance, distant education, and tele-medicine services. In terms of testing the reliability of the proposed design framework, the spinoff project from this thesis -called “Savera” -will follow the three phase design framework and we expect to draw some general lessons from this experience. This thesis should be considered as an example of how a bottom-up approach that involves users in the content development and the design process could lead to user-centered ICT developments for the rural context.

Currently there is no market for adaptable personal luminaires in the office environment. The investments would be too high and this while there are no evident benefits. However in the future, with the rise of LEDs and increased knowledge on the effects of lighting on humans, this all may change. LEDs will become more affordable and consume less energy than the current solutions, leading to better return on investment times. In addition, Philips is expecting to prove that adaptive lighting can positively influence the productivity of office workers. If Philips is able to prove this benefit, then companies are likely to invest in adaptive lighting as this investment represents a small percentage of a company’s costs and is an investment that will benefit the company’s greatest asset: its employees. When this happens the flexible office worker should get control over a personal luminaire, since the ideal lighting conditions may vary significantly from person to person. Automating the choice or lighting is not possible as there are simply too much determinants in the choice of light, leading to a complex situation. The participants of the first study indicated that they would like to control the light intensity, colour temperature, size and location of the spotlight. Controlling the personal luminaire should be simple and fast as people want to focus on their work and not on their light, as indicated in the second user study and theory. The second study also showed that the majority of participants would like to control these lighting parameters individual from one another to create their personal preferred light setting, thus not based on pre-defined scenes. Additionally the majority of participants wanted to be able to save their setting into a personal preset, so that they can easily re-use their light preferences. This also complies with earlier research presenting that in time people home-in on the setting they like best. For the flexible office worker an important addition is that the saved personal setting can be loaded from any desk. Solely providing the office worker with control over a personal luminaire, will probably not result in increased productivity. The average office worker does not know what proper lighting is and how it affects him or her, which might result in improper choice of light settings. Therefore it is important that office workers will be educated to ensure that the most optimal settings are chosen based on their knowledge as well as their personal preference. This might sound exaggerated, but for people that work about 40 hours a week at a desk, this is not a trivial matter.

Products in the home offer ever more functionality. Advances in sensor technology, embedded processing power, and modeling and reasoning software, have enabled everyday products to sense their environment and eventually anticipate user needs. The enabling technology for ambient intelligence is now available. Whereas in the early days most of the research was technology-oriented, nowadays increasingly the focus is on users and user experience. A next step is to create so-called considerate products that, analogous to human-human interaction, will consider the user as well as the context of use when reacting to or even anticipating a new situation. The PhD project aims to find out how user experiences of home products can be measured and modeled, and to find out how these models of experiences could be operationalized in considerate home products. Prototypes of a home atmosphere control system and a home notification system have been studied in the field as well as in a laboratory living room setting. Four user studies showed that by creating considerate products that are aware of user experiences and context of use, acceptability of product actions could be improved. The prototypes used in the studies are examples of how models of user experiences can help designers create controllable and pleasurable products for the home. The ultimate considerate home product might autonomously anticipate user needs and adapt to the context of use so that the product blends in with existing living patterns.