Security and Privacy Implications of Pervasive Memory Augmentation

Pervasive computing is beginning to offer the potential to rethink and redefine how technology can support human memory augmentation. For example, the emergence of widespread pervasive sensing, personal recording technologies, and systems for the quantified self are creating an environment in which it's possible to capture fine-grained traces of many aspects of human activity. Contemporary psychology theories suggest that these traces can then be used to manipulate our ability to recall - to both reinforce and attenuate human memories. Here, the authors consider the privacy and security implications of using pervasive computing to augment human memory. They describe a number of scenarios, outline the key architectural building blocks, and identify entirely new types of security and privacy threats-namely, those related to data security (experience provenance), data management (establishing new paradigms for digital memory ownership), data integrity (memory attenuation and recall-induced forgetting), and bystander privacy. Together, these threats present compelling research challenges for the pervasive computing research community. This article is part of a special issue on privacy and security

Technologies for employability

The graduate job market is highly competitive and prospective candidates could greatly benefit from new tools for self presentation. This paper explores one such tool, namely the video CV and its value for graduate employability. We report on 16 interviews with prospective employers and career coaches to investigate its benefits and challenges. Findings suggest its specific characteristics relating to the script content, performance and format. We conclude with several suggestions for supporting graduates’ preparation of video CVs including awareness of their challenges, provision of professional help, and dedicated training sessions

Body-centric computing: neurofeedback, affect, memories, gestures : Dagstuhl Seminar Invited Talk

This talk highlights my scholarly work focusing of body-centric computing, around keywords such as affect, gestures, wearables and biofeedback. My focus on body has not been much about how the body moves in space while performing physical activities, but rather about how the body is ”moved” by emotional states. This interest in emotions is underpinned by emotions’ ability to signal meaning. In particular, I investigate how by mirroring feelings back, people can become more self-aware and ultimately able to better engage in emotional self-regulation. Some of my work on emotional wellbeing, emotional memories, neurofeedback, digital disposal and embodiment is outlined through design exemplars such as MeditAid and AffectCam systems, and studies of digital breakup and rituals of letting go. I also offer an overview of AffecTech Innovative Training Network on personal technologies for affective health. My work draws from theoretical perspectives of phenomenology, embodied cognition, and UX, and methodologies of iterative user centred design, and qualitative fieldwork

Craft-based Exploration of Sense of Self

Self-defining memories are crucial for the sense of self, yet we know little of how to cue their recall in old age. This paper reports on interviews with 3 participants in a 10 week craft project. Findings indicate the challenges of introspection, of recalling negative self-defining memories, and of inaccessible cues, and we conclude with three design implications for addressing them

Communication Needs of Elderly at Risk of Falls and their Remote Family

The aging population experiences increased health risks, both physical and emotional. Two such risks are those of isolation and falling. This papers draws from HCI literature in these two independent research areas to explore the needs of family communication with elderly parents at risk of falls. We report on a study with 7 elderly parents and 3 of adult children, as well as a group interview with 12 elderly living in a sheltered accommodation. Findings indicate important emotional needs on both parts: adult children’s anxiety for the wellbeing of their parents at risk of falls, and elderly’s need for autonomy and their appreciation for an aesthetic design. We concluded with implications of these findings for designing for family communication in this challenging context

Keynote: HCI research and wellbeing

This talk provides outlines the disciplinary field of Human-Computer Interaction and provides an overview of my work on technologies for emotional wellbeing and mental health. The presentation places emphasis on the value the human body experiencing the world and describe research outcomes regarding digital disposal following life transitions marked by social loss, and design principles for affective health technologies. The talk concludes with an outline of the AffecTech: Personal technologies for affective health, an EC-funded Innovative Training Network and its interdisciplinary focus

Collecting Shared Experiences through Lifelogging: Lessons Learned

The emergence of widespread pervasive sensing, personal recording technologies, and systems for the quantified self are creating an environment in which one can capture fine-grained activity traces. Such traces have wide applicability in domains such as human memory augmentation, behavior change, and healthcare. However, obtaining these traces for research is nontrivial, especially those containing photographs of everyday activities. To source data for their own work, the authors created an experimental setup in which they collected detailed traces of a group of researchers over 2.75 days. They share their experiences of this process and present a series of lessons learned for other members of the research community conducting similar studies

Self-defining memory cues:creative expression and emotional meaning

This paper explores how people generate cues for capturing personal meaningful daily events, which can be used for later recall. Such understanding can be explored to inform the design and development of personal informatics systems, aimed to support reflection and increased self-awareness. We describe a diary study with six participants and discuss initial findings showing the qualities of daily meaningful events, the value of different types of cues and their distinct contents for supporting episodic recall

Designing personal grief rituals:an analysis of symbolic objects and actions

Personal grief rituals are beneficial in dealing with complicated grief, but challenging to design, as they require symbolic objects and actions meeting clients’ emotional needs. We report interviews with ten therapists with expertise in both grief therapy and grief rituals. Findings indicate three types of rituals supporting honoring, letting go, and self transformation, with the latter being particularly complex. Outcome also point to a taxonomy of ritual objects for framing and remembering ritual experience, and for capturing and processing grief. Besides symbolic possessions, we identified other types of ritual objects including transformational and future-oriented ones. Symbolic actions include creative craft of ritual objects, respectful handling, disposal and symbolic play. We conclude with theoretical implications of these findings, and a reflection on their value for tailored, creative co-design of grief rituals. In particular, we identified several implications for designing grief rituals which include accounting for the client’s need, selecting (or creating) the most appropriate objects and actions from the identified types, integrating principles of both grief and art/drama therapy, exploring clients’ affinity for the ancient elements as medium of disposal in letting go rituals, and the value of technology for recording and reflecting on ritual experience

Design for rituals of letting go:an embodiment perspective on disposal practices informed by grief therapy

People increasingly live their lives online, accruing large collections of digital possessions, which symbolically represent important relationships, events, and activities. Most HCI research on bereavement focuses on retaining these significant digital possessions to honor the departed. However recent work suggests that significant digital possessions may complicate moving on; they function as both comforting and painful reminders but currently provide inflexible methods for disposal. Little work has investigated the disposal of digital objects as a means of letting go. To better understand this we interviewed 10 psychotherapists who employ rituals of letting go to help patients overcome loss in situations such as a divorce, a breakup, or a stillbirth. Patients disposed of either natural artefacts or symbolic personal possessions through actions such as burning, burying, or placing in a body of water. Therapists noted people increasingly have digital possessions, and that the act of deletion does not offer the same cathartic sense of release as disposal of material artefacts. Based on analysis of this grief therapy, we propose a new conceptual framework for rituals of letting go that highlights temporality, visibility, and force. It provides a vocabulary to talk about disposal. We then offer design implications connecting the rituals of letting go to the disposal of digital things. Based on our interviews and analytic framework, we propose novel technologies that better connect the embodied nature of letting go rituals to the process of digital disposal