This research aims to examine how Kansei Intelligence contributes to psychological safety in remote workplaces and suggests ways to create pedagogical workshops for workers by applying Kansei Intelligence. Based on the literature, three concepts associated with Kansei Intelligence are identified: 1. Kansei’s meaning changes according to time, people, and space, 2. Kansei involves the capacity to sense one’s own surroundings, have environmental perceptions, and cultivate a sense of belonging to nature, and 3. It is important to be aware of one’s own Kansei status, as well as that of others.
Applied qualitative research was conducted in this study; data were ultimately gathered from six interviews and four workshops in various settings, either in Finland or Japan. Applying Kansei Intelligence, four workshops were designed with collaborators. This thesis addresses the two research questions through thematic analysis. The interview data describe different approaches to studying how Kansei Intelligence contributes to the fostering of psychological safety in workplaces. The workshop data indicate how Kansei Intelligence works in online workshops and result in suggestions for subsequent workshops.
This thesis indicates that Kansei Intelligence can contribute to psychological safety in online work-places, foster interpersonal relationships through emotional reflection exercises. This also suggests that Kansei Intelligence can create a sense of togetherness and non-verbal communication that normally cannot be created merely with ordinary communication among participants in an online environment
