Wearable Computing for Health and Fitness: Exploring the Relationship between Data and Human Behaviour

Health and fitness wearable technology has recently advanced, making it easier for an individual to monitor their behaviours. Previously self generated data interacts with the user to motivate positive behaviour change, but issues arise when relating this to long term mention of wearable devices. Previous studies within this area are discussed. We also consider a new approach where data is used to support instead of motivate, through monitoring and logging to encourage reflection. Based on issues highlighted, we then make recommendations on the direction in which future work could be most beneficial

Establishing Rapport with Conversational Agents: Comparing the Effect of Envelope and Emotional Feedback

Master'sMASTER OF ART

Designing for Understanding: Helping Older Adults Understand Over-the-Counter Medication Information

This research is motivated by some of the challenges faced by the healthcare community in communicating health information to the public and the potential for user-centered technology design to address some of these limitations. Each year, thousands die or are injured due to adverse-drug events due to both prescription and over-the-counter medications. The integration of technology has improved the incidence rate for adverse-drug events due to prescription medications. Similarly, personal health records and other consumer-based health applications have been shown to be beneficial for helping individuals manage their health. Despite this growing body of research, little to no research has been conducted to gauge the possible effectiveness of technology created through a user-centered design process to assist consumers in understanding similar events due to over-the-counter medications. This research explores the implications for the design of interactive technology to help older adults understand the possible risk of an adverse drug events resulting from taking over-the-counter (OTC) medications. A user-centered design process was employed, leveraging various techniques to design technology to assist older adults with over-the-counter medication information. The three studies conducted for this research are part of an Exploratory Mixed-Methods Study, designed to identify current practices and challenges, identify opportunities for technology integration, and to examine the usability and effectiveness of the resultant technological artifacts for assisting older adults with over-the-counter medication information. Data collection included semi-structure interviews, surveys, questionnaires, and observations. Results from each study suggest that the technologies evaluated are useful for assisting older adults with over-the-counter medication information. Design recommendations identified throughout each phase are presented to provide insight on the technology features found useful and not so useful by older adults throughout the process of this research

Assistente virtual para facilitar o autocuidado de pessoas mais velhas com diabetes tipo 2

Trabalho de projecto de mestrado, Engenharia Informática (Interação e Conhecimento) Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências, 2018Neste projeto apresenta-se uma solução tecnológica para o autocuidado de idosos com diabetes tipo 2, na qual se encontra incluído um avatar com representação antropomórfica e dotado de inteligência artificial, que desempenha a função de assistente virtual. O objetivo é preencher uma lacuna existente na falta de acompanhamento entre consultas médicas presenciais da diabetes, respondendo às necessidades diárias do doente: i) motivando-o à prática de exercício físico com planos adaptados às suas limitações; ii) aconselhar nas suas escolhas alimentares e no planeamento de refeições; e iii) relembrar a toma da medicação receitada por profissionais de saúde. O assistente responde consoante a motivação do utilizador, felicitando-o por etapas já conquistadas e promovendo a continuação de um bom trabalho, propondo-lhe novos desafios. Este sistema está disponível para dispositivos tablet com o sistema operativo Android. O desenvolvimento da solução foi seguido da realização de testes com doentes do grupo alvo e profissionais de saúde em centros de saúde da área de Lisboa e na Escola Superior de Enfermagem de Lisboa (ESEL). Este trabalho recebeu o apoio financeiro da Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) através de dois financiamentos distintos, o da Unidade de I&D BioISI - Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute (referência UID/MULTI/04046/2013) e o do projeto VASelfCare, projeto nº 024250. Neste projeto, liderado pela ESEL, trabalha uma equipa multidisciplinar composta por investigadores da própria ESEL, da Faculdade de Farmácia da Universidade de Lisboa (FFUL), da Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa (FCUL) e da Escola Superior de Desporto de Rio Maior (ESDRM) do Instituto Politécnico de Santarém.This project presents a technological solution for the selfcare of elderly people with type 2 diabetes, in which an avatar with an anthropomorphic representation and artificial intelligence are incorporated. The main goal is to fill a gap in the lack of follow-up between face-to-face diabetes medical appointments, responding to the patient's daily needs by: i) motivating him/her to practice physical activity, with plans adapted to his/her limitations; ii) advising on his/her food choices and meal planning; and iii) reminding him/her to take the medication prescribed by health professionals. The assistant will respond according to the users’ motivation, congratulating him/her on the steps already taken and promoting the continuation of a ‘good job’ by proposing new challenges. This system is available for tablet devices. The development of the solution has been followed by tests with real patients of the target group and health professionals in health centers in the Lisbon area and in Escola Superior de Enfermagem de Lisboa (ESEL). This project received financial support from the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT), sponsored by two different funding, one from Unidade de I&D BioISI - Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute (reference UID/MULTI/04046/2013), and the other from VASelfCare project, no. 024250. It is led by ESEL, and involves a multidisciplinary team composed by researchers from ESEL, from Faculdade de Farmácia da Universidade de Lisboa (FFUL), from Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa (FCUL), and from Escola Superior de Desporto de Rio Maior (ESDRM) of Instituto Politécnico de Santarém

Designing Embodied Interactive Software Agents for E-Learning: Principles, Components, and Roles

Embodied interactive software agents are complex autonomous, adaptive, and social software systems with a digital embodiment that enables them to act on and react to other entities (users, objects, and other agents) in their environment through bodily actions, which include the use of verbal and non-verbal communicative behaviors in face-to-face interactions with the user. These agents have been developed for various roles in different application domains, in which they perform tasks that have been assigned to them by their developers or delegated to them by their users or by other agents. In computer-assisted learning, embodied interactive pedagogical software agents have the general task to promote human learning by working with students (and other agents) in computer-based learning environments, among them e-learning platforms based on Internet technologies, such as the Virtual Linguistics Campus (www.linguistics-online.com). In these environments, pedagogical agents provide contextualized, qualified, personalized, and timely assistance, cooperation, instruction, motivation, and services for both individual learners and groups of learners. This thesis develops a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, and user-oriented view of the design of embodied interactive pedagogical software agents, which integrates theoretical and practical insights from various academic and other fields. The research intends to contribute to the scientific understanding of issues, methods, theories, and technologies that are involved in the design, implementation, and evaluation of embodied interactive software agents for different roles in e-learning and other areas. For developers, the thesis provides sixteen basic principles (Added Value, Perceptible Qualities, Balanced Design, Coherence, Consistency, Completeness, Comprehensibility, Individuality, Variability, Communicative Ability, Modularity, Teamwork, Participatory Design, Role Awareness, Cultural Awareness, and Relationship Building) plus a large number of specific guidelines for the design of embodied interactive software agents and their components. Furthermore, it offers critical reviews of theories, concepts, approaches, and technologies from different areas and disciplines that are relevant to agent design. Finally, it discusses three pedagogical agent roles (virtual native speaker, coach, and peer) in the scenario of the linguistic fieldwork classes on the Virtual Linguistics Campus and presents detailed considerations for the design of an agent for one of these roles (the virtual native speaker)