Persuasive Technology for Learning in Business Context

"Persuasive Design is a relatively new concept which employs general principles of persuasion that can be implemented in persuasive technology. This concept has been introduced by BJ Fogg in 1998, who since then has further extended it to use computers for changing attitudes and behaviour. Such principles can be applied very well in learning and teaching: in traditional human-led learning, teachers always have employed persuasion as one of the elements of teaching. Persuasive technology moves these principles into the digital domain, by focusing on technology that inherently stimulates learners to learn more quickly and effectively. This is very relevant for the area of Business Management in several aspects: Consumer Behavior, Communications, Human Resource, Marketing & Advertising, Organisational Behavior & Leadership. The persuasive principles identified by BJ Fogg are: reduction, tunnelling, tailoring, suggestion, self-monitoring, surveillance, conditioning, simulation, social signals. Also relevant is the concept of KAIROS, which means the just-in-time, at the right place provision of information/stimulus. In the EuroPLOT project (2010-2013) we have developed persuasive learning objects and tools (PLOTs) in which we have applied persuasive designs and principles. In this context, we have developed a pedagogical framework for active engagement, based on persuasive design in which the principles of persuasive learning have been formalised in a 6-step guide for persuasive learning. These principles have been embedded in two tools – PLOTmaker and PLOTLearner – which have been developed for creating persuasive learning objects. The tools provide specific capability for implementing persuasive principles at the very beginning of the design of learning objects. The feasibility of employing persuasive learning concepts with these tools has been investigated in four different case studies with groups of teachers and learners from realms with distinctly different teaching and learning practices: Business Computing, language learning, museum learning, and chemical substance handling. These case studies have involved the following learner target groups: school children, university students, tertiary students, vocational learners and adult learners. With regards to the learning context, they address archive-based learning, industrial training, and academic teaching. Alltogether, these case studies include participants from Sweden, Africa (Madagascar), Denmark, Czech Republic, and UK. One of the outcomes of this investigation was that one cannot apply a common set of persuasive designs that would be valid for general use in all situations: on the contrary, the persuasive principles are very specific to learning contexts and therefore must be specifically tailored for each situation. Two of these case studies have a direct relevance to education in the realm of Business Management: Business Computing and language learning (for International Business). In this paper we will present the first results from the evaluation of persuasive technology driven learning in these two relevant areas.

Persuasion Profiles to Promote Pedestrianism: Effective Targeting of Active Travel Messages

This study recommends novel strategies for tailoring messages to encourage walking, for use in travel planning, Mobility as a Service platforms and other apps which promote sustainable transport behaviour. We suggest strategies based on individual demographic and psychosocial factors derived from the findings of a study of the persuasiveness of different arguments to encourage walking. 402 participants from across the UK were recruited to evaluate 16 pro-walking arguments systematically varied by type of argumentation used, and the values to which they appealed. We explored interactions between these argument features and participants’ personality, travel attitude, age and recent transport mode usage. We report several interesting findings, including that the types of argumentation used, participants’ travel attitude, and their previous transport uses all had no effect on the perceived persuasiveness of messages. Factors which did have an effect on the perceived persuasiveness of messages included the age and personality of the participants and the value to which the message appealed. We also found several complex interactions between these factors, such as that those higher in agreeableness tended to rate arguments emphasising environmental benefits as more persuasive, and that younger participants tended to rate arguments appealing to the health benefits and convenience of walking as less persuasive

Collaboration or competition: The impact of incentive types on urban cycling

Bicycling is an important mode of transport for cities and many cities are interested in promoting its uptake by a larger portion of the population. Several cycling mobile applications primarily rely on competition as a motivation strategy for urban cyclists. Yet, collaboration may be equally useful to motivate and engage cyclists. The present research reports on an experiment comparing the impact of collaboration-based and competition-based rewards on users’ enjoyment, satisfaction, engagement with, and intention to cycle. It involved a total of 57 participants in three European cities: Münster (Germany), Castelló (Spain), and Valletta (Malta). Our results show participants from the study reporting higher enjoyment and engagement with cycling in the collaboration condition. However, we did not find a significant impact on the participants’ worldview when it comes to the intentions to start or increase cycling behavior. The results support the use of collaboration-based rewards in the design of game-based applications to promote urban cycling

Leveraging Mobile UX Principles for Nudges In Green Transportation

Smart nudging has a goal to try to nudge users, these nudges are personally tailored for their specific situation and needs. In this thesis we will combine knowledge from Nudging and principles from user interface design and user experience research to increase the likelihood of the smart nudges to be as effective as possible

Free Ride in Rush-hour Traffic – Designing Gamified Smart Mobility Systems for Sustainable Use

A large proportion of traffic congestion can be attributed to daily commute. While smart mobility systems (SMSs) intend to address the resulting challenges by actively changing users’ behavior, many SMSs suffer from users’ meaningful engagement. Research and practice have started examining engagement factors in order to increase meaningful engagement with SMSs. The question of how traffic participants can be continuously involved with SMSs to sustainably change their behavior has not been answered satisfactorily yet. In our paper, we identify relevant gamification elements suitable to improve meaningful engagement based on a literature study and market analysis. We used a design science approach to derive design requirements. Building on these, we assume comprehensive design principles and used them to derive initial design features. With these, we started a first feature configuration and a prototypical app implementation towards designing a sustainable SMS

Using socio-ecological model to inform the design of persuasive applications

Diverse persuasive applications that aim for behavioural changes have been developed. However, the method in which particular persuasive design principles are chosen over others remains unclear. Meanwhile, the use of socio-ecological model has been widely utilized in clinical research, as a basis to understand the factors in the entire ecological system that influences behavioural patterns. Because persuasive technology aims to change the behaviour and attitudes of users, we believe that the use of socio- ecological model would be beneficial to inform the design of persuasive applications. Accordingly, in this paper, we attempt to demonstrate the mapping of the socio-ecological factors and persuasive design principles by conducting interviews and expert reviews. Based on our approach, 12 socio-ecological factors that influence physical activity behaviour, and corresponding relevant persuasive design principles to deal with these factors, are identified

Healthy Transportation Choices with IoT and Smart Nudging

Modern technology has provided people with ease of living but at the same time has given birth to the problems of equally modern nature. For instance, high reliance on private transportation has resulted in unintended consequences such as high level of air pollution and congestion in urban cities. Another main disadvantage that is often overlooked is related to the rise of several noncommunicable diseases that are caused due to excessive dependence on cars and lack of physical activity. This thesis is entirely dedicated to encounter serious hazards of lack of physical activity by choosing unhealthy transportation choices. The interaction between people and the computers has become ubiquitous over the span of years. People interact in digital environment for a number of reasons. From checking weather conditions to running multinational trading businesses, computer driven digital automation has taken over what has always remained a manual handiwork. Cognizant of the potency of computer driven services and its authority, we propose applying nudge theory to encourage users to choose healthy options when it comes to any type of mobility. The first step involves researching about collecting, storing and performing analysis on data from different resources and then suggesting different techniques to manipulate it in order to perform an effective nudge

Smokers’ and drinkers’ choice of smartphone applications and expectations of engagement: a think aloud and interview study

BACKGROUND: Public health organisations such as the National Health Service in the United Kingdom and the National Institutes of Health in the United States provide access to online libraries of publicly endorsed smartphone applications (apps); however, there is little evidence that users rely on this guidance. Rather, one of the most common methods of finding new apps is to search an online store. As hundreds of smoking cessation and alcohol-related apps are currently available on the market, smokers and drinkers must actively choose which app to download prior to engaging with it. The influences on this choice are yet to be identified. This study aimed to investigate 1) design features that shape users’ choice of smoking cessation or alcohol reduction apps, and 2) design features judged to be important for engagement. METHODS: Adult smokers (n = 10) and drinkers (n = 10) interested in using an app to quit/cut down were asked to search an online store to identify and explore a smoking cessation or alcohol reduction app of their choice whilst thinking aloud. Semi-structured interview techniques were used to allow participants to elaborate on their statements. An interpretivist theoretical framework informed the analysis. Verbal reports were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using inductive thematic analysis. RESULTS: Participants chose apps based on their immediate look and feel, quality as judged by others’ ratings and brand recognition (‘social proof’), and titles judged to be realistic and relevant. Monitoring and feedback, goal setting, rewards and prompts were identified as important for engagement, fostering motivation and autonomy. Tailoring of content, a non-judgmental communication style, privacy and accuracy were viewed as important for engagement, fostering a sense of personal relevance and trust. Sharing progress on social media and the use of craving management techniques in social settings were judged not to be engaging because of concerns about others’ negative reactions. CONCLUSIONS: Choice of a smoking cessation or alcohol reduction app may be influenced by its immediate look and feel, ‘social proof’ and titles that appear realistic. Design features that enhance motivation, autonomy, personal relevance and credibility may be important for engagement