Towards a Holistic Approach to Designing Theory-based Mobile Health Interventions

Increasing evidence has shown that theory-based health behavior change interventions are more effective than non-theory-based ones. However, only a few segments of relevant studies were theory-based, especially the studies conducted by non-psychology researchers. On the other hand, many mobile health interventions, even those based on the behavioral theories, may still fail in the absence of a user-centered design process. The gap between behavioral theories and user-centered design increases the difficulty of designing and implementing mobile health interventions. To bridge this gap, we propose a holistic approach to designing theory-based mobile health interventions built on the existing theories and frameworks of three categories: (1) behavioral theories (e.g., the Social Cognitive Theory, the Theory of Planned Behavior, and the Health Action Process Approach), (2) the technological models and frameworks (e.g., the Behavior Change Techniques, the Persuasive System Design and Behavior Change Support System, and the Just-in-Time Adaptive Interventions), and (3) the user-centered systematic approaches (e.g., the CeHRes Roadmap, the Wendel's Approach, and the IDEAS Model). This holistic approach provides researchers a lens to see the whole picture for developing mobile health interventions

Integrating Taxonomies into Theory-Based Digital Health Interventions for Behavior Change: A Holistic Framework

Digital health interventions have been emerging in the last decade. Due to their interdisciplinary nature, digital health interventions are guided and influenced by theories (e.g., behavioral theories, behavior change technologies, persuasive technology) from different research communities. However, digital health interventions are always coded using various taxonomies and reported in insufficient perspectives. The inconsistency and incomprehensiveness will bring difficulty for conducting systematic reviews and sharing contributions among communities. Based on existing related work, therefore, we propose a holistic framework that embeds behavioral theories, behavior change technique (BCT) taxonomy, and persuasive system design (PSD) principles. Including four development steps, two toolboxes, and one workflow, our framework aims to guide digital health intervention developers to design, evaluate, and report their work in a formative and comprehensive way

Designing an Adaptive Web Navigation Interface for Users with Variable Pointing Performance

Many online services and products require users to point and interact with user interface elements. For individuals who experience variable pointing ability due to physical impairments, environmental issues or age, using an input device (e.g., a computer mouse) to select elements on a website can be difficult. Adaptive user interfaces dynamically change their functionality in response to user behavior. They can support individuals with variable pointing abilities by 1) adapting dynamically to make element selection easier when a user is experiencing pointing difficulties, and 2) informing users about these pointing errors. While adaptive interfaces are increasingly prevalent on the Web, little is known about the preferences and expectations of users with variable pointing abilities and how to design systems that dynamically support them given these preferences. We conducted an investigation with 27 individuals who intermittently experience pointing problems to inform the design of an adaptive interface for web navigation. We used a functional high-fidelity prototype as a probe to gather information about user preferences and expectations. Our participants expected the system to recognize and integrate their preferences for how pointing tasks were carried out, preferred to receive information about system functionality and wanted to be in control of the interaction. We used findings from the study to inform the design of an adaptive Web navigation interface, PINATA that tracks user pointing performance over time and provides dynamic notifications and assistance tailored to their specifications. Our work contributes to a better understanding of users' preferences and expectations of the design of an adaptive pointing system

Autistic traits affect interpersonal motor coordination by modulating strategic use of role-based behavior

Background: Despite the fact that deficits in social communication and interaction are at the core of Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC), no study has yet tested individuals on a continuum from neurotypical development to autism in an on-line, cooperative, joint action task. In our study, we aimed to assess whether the degree of autistic traits affects participants' ability to modulate their motor behavior while interacting in a Joint Grasping task and according to their given role. Methods: Sixteen pairs of adult participants played a cooperative social interactive game in which they had to synchronize their reach-to-grasp movements. Pairs were comprised of one ASC and one neurotypical with no cognitive disability. In alternate experimental blocks, one participant knew what action to perform (instructed role) while the other had to infer it from his/her partner’s action (adaptive role). When in the adaptive condition, participants were told to respond with an action that was either opposite or similar to their partner. Participants also played a non-social control game in which they had to synchronize with a non-biological stimulus. Results: In the social interactive task, higher degree of autistic trait s predicted less ability to mod ulate joint action according to one’s interactive role. In the non-social task, autistic traits did not predict differences in movement preparation and planning, thus ruling out the possibility that social interact ive task results were due to basic motor or executive function difficulties. Furthermore, when participants played the non-social game, the higher their autistic traits, the more they were interfered by the non-biological stimulus. Conclusions: Our study shows for the first time that high autistic traits predict a stereotypical interaction style when individuals are required to modulate their movements in order to coordinate with their partner according to their role in a joint action task. Specifically, the infrequent emergence of role-based motor behavior modulation during on-line motor cooperation in participants with high autistic traits sheds light on the numerous difficulties ASC have in nonverbal social interaction

Current Concepts and Trends in Human-Automation Interaction

Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively.The purpose of this panel was to provide a general overview and discussion of some of the most current and controversial concepts and trends in human-automation interaction. The panel was composed of eight researchers and practitioners. The panelists are well-known experts in the area and offered differing views on a variety of different human-automation topics. The range of concepts and trends discussed in this panel include: general taxonomies regarding stages and levels of automation and function allocation, individualized adaptive automation, automation-induced complacency, economic rationality and the use of automation, the potential utility of false alarms, the influence of different types of false alarms on trust and reliance, and a system-wide theory of trust in multiple automated aids

Organization of Multi-Agent Systems: An Overview

In complex, open, and heterogeneous environments, agents must be able to reorganize towards the most appropriate organizations to adapt unpredictable environment changes within Multi-Agent Systems (MAS). Types of reorganization can be seen from two different levels. The individual agents level (micro-level) in which an agent changes its behaviors and interactions with other agents to adapt its local environment. And the organizational level (macro-level) in which the whole system changes it structure by adding or removing agents. This chapter is dedicated to overview different aspects of what is called MAS Organization including its motivations, paradigms, models, and techniques adopted for statically or dynamically organizing agents in MAS.Comment: 12 page