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Personal health and wellbeing have grown as an object of study within HCI research and many individuals undergoing weight loss journeys use persuasive systems, such as weight loss apps, to guide them. These systems rely on various principles to persuade users toward their health goal and have in much research been considered having positive effects. There are however also parallel findings indicating unwanted effects. To explore the effects of persuasive system design, we conduct a longitudinal exploratory expert evaluation of 10 free weight loss tracking apps by emulating drastic weight loss for an extended period of time. The objective of the exploration is to unravel potential negative effects of using such systems. Our findings highlight risks of negative effects as some apps take a passive stance toward drastic weight loss, while others actively encourage it through design. We contribute to a growing strand of health related HCI research by mapping out the relation between design and negative consequences of persuasive system use.

This paper outlines the perspective of entrepreneurs on dark design patterns and their use. The phenomena of persuasive design and dark design patterns have up to this point primarily focused on categorization efforts, the occurrence of these patterns and to some extent on end-user perspectives. Limited focus has been placed on the actors making the actual decision to use them. This paper reports an initial analysis of the perspective of entrepreneurs on dark design patterns. Initial insights are provided regarding entrepreneurs’ perspective and the rationale behind it. 

The number of websites and mobile applications available is growing continually, as are the persuasive approaches to influence human behavior and decision making. Although designing for persuasion offers several potential benefits, recent developments expose various deceptive designs, that is, dark patterns, that utilize psychological factors to nudge people toward, from someone else’s perspective, desired directions. This paper contributes to an increased awareness of the phenomenon of dark patterns through our exploring how users perceive and experience these patterns. Hence, we chose a qualitative research approach, with focus groups and interviews, for our exploration. Our analysis shows that participants were moderately aware of these deceptive techniques, several of which were perceived as sneaky and dishonest. Respondents further expressed a resigned attitude toward such techniques and primarily blamed businesses for their occurrence. Users considered their dependency on services employing these practices, thus making it difficult to avoid fully dark patterns.

Vår presentation kommer att behandla två nyligen framtagna projektkursmoment vid Institutionen för informatik, där vi skapar förutsättningar för lärande så lika som möjligt de som framtidens systemvetare och beteendevetare inom IT-området ställs inför. Kursmomenten (som vi valt att se som en helhet) baseras på tre huvudsakliga pedagogiska idéer:

1. Integrera teori och praktik inom ramen för samma kurs, med ett moment som handlar om att planera ett projekt och ett moment som handlar om själva genomförandet av detta.

Vi anser det vara väldigt viktigt för en individs kunskapsutveckling att praktiskt få prova på något som man tidigare endast lärt sig på en teoretisk nivå. Genom att se kursmomenten som en helhet kunde studenterna först planera vad man skulle göra (teori), och sedan genomföra detta (praktik). Erfarenheten var att vissa saker fungerade precis som man tänkt, medan andra saker krävde förändring. Detta är en värdefull insikt inför ett kommande arbetsliv.

2. Skapa förutsättningar för lärande när det gäller gruppdynamik genom att samarbeta över programgränser och ställas inför föränderliga utmaningar.

Projektgrupperna sattes samman av projektdeltagare från lika delar det Systemvetenskapliga programmet liksom det Beteendevetenskapliga programmet med inriktning mot IT-miljöer. Som yrkesverksam, med en utbildning från informatik, arbetar man med största sannolikhet ofta i projekt som relaterar till olika dimensioner av samhällets digitalisering. Något som utmärker projekt är att de består av deltagare med olika kompetenser, viljor och personligheter – omständigheter som ställer krav på förmågan att hantera gruppdynamik. Olika deltagare har olika egenskaper och karaktärer och det gäller för grupper att kunna hantera dessa på bästa möjliga sätt. Även för individen är detta en viktig process. Det handlar om att lära känns sig själv och sina egna styrkor och svagheter.

3. Skapa förutsättningar för lärande när det gäller att arbeta mot riktiga klienter som upplever verkliga behov och även ställer krav.

På kursen arbetar vi med riktiga beställare och skarpa case, vilket ger ett flertal fördelar. Dels skapar det en spänning som ofta leder till ökat engagemang och lärande hos studenterna. Dels får studenterna lära sig att hantera en extern klient, en klient som de inte känner, som inte besitter deras kunskap och som kan ha väldigt annorlunda förväntningar på samarbetet. Som yrkesverksamma är detta vanligt förekommande och vi hade svårligen kunnat uppnå samma effekt med fiktiva case. Ett skarpt case har dessutom alltid en överlägsen nivå av komplexitet, och därmed även överraskningar, i jämförelse med ett påhittat case.

Introduction. This paper focuses on the unexplored area of master suppression techniques on Facebook. A lot is known about these techniques in offline contexts, but very little is known about their application in the online context in general or their use and nature on social media in particular. This paper therefore explores the use of master suppression techniques on a social media platform. Method. We used a netnographic approach based on passive and unobtrusive observations of 30 open forums on Facebook. Approximately 1000 threads and posts were observed. Analysis. We analyzed the gathered data using qualitative content analysis techniques based on the concepts of meaning units, condensed meaning units, codes, subcategories, categories and themes. Results. People apply a range of master suppression techniques on Facebook, some of which have been imported from offline contexts while others have not. Conclusions. We were able to determine which master suppression techniques people apply on Facebook and show that they appear to be harsher than we initially expected. A categorisation model for master suppression techniques used on Facebook was developed using these findings.

Sport IT is an emerging global movement. Many research efforts have addressed the potential of IT for promoting physical activity, a countermeasure against the factors that cause welfare problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. This paper presents an overview of research related to IT and physical activity and identifies three reoccurring themes; 1) Measurement and latforms, 2) Support for opportunistic individual training and finally, 3) Encouragement through Toys and Games. These themes or chategories of Sports IT, are furher explored in a detailed and systematic way. This is wrapped up in a discussion of what could be seen as impotant further research addressing the issues found in this body of research.

This paper outlines the rationale for, and plans to, conduct a study addressing the paradoxical nature of IT-use in relation to everyday activities. While the area of User Experience Design (UXD) focus on immediate use of an IT-artifact, the focus of the proposed empirical study is how individuals use, or restrict their use, of these artifacts to enhance and avoid inhibiting an experience. We expect the outcome to be an improved understanding of individual strategies for ITuse for enhancing the experience of everyday activities as well as the rationale behind them.

The ubiquitous nature of online access, reduced prices on consumer electronics and the increased number of connected everyday artifacts, have created a situation where internet use and social networking participation are spreading to user groups not touched upon before. One of many consequence of this change is how we in the last couple of years and in many countries have been witnessing a radical increase in online presence of seniors (La Rose, 2008, Zickuhr and Madden, 2012, Findahl 2012). In the US, for instance, more than every second senior aged 65 or above have found their way online (Zickuhr and Madden, 2012). As for other groups of Internet users, social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn are becoming increasingly popular among seniors. From 2009 to 2011 usage levels of social networking sites within this group in the US climbed from 13% to 33%, an increase with 150%.

 The place for internet and social networking in the lives of seniors is by many researchers considered to be as a tool to avoid loneliness, unhappiness and isolation during their senescence (Fiori et al. 2007, Gibson et al. 2010, Lewis and Ariyachandrat 2010, Sundar et al. 2011, Taylor 2011). Some of the ways to achieve that is through enabling an easy way to maintain contact with family and friends (Selwyn 2004, Lewis and Ariyachandrat 2010, Sundar et al. 2011), potentially causing increased health (Berkman, 1995, Gibson et al. 2010), access to health and societal related information (Selwyn 2004) and a chance to live at home as long as possible (Sundar et al. 2011).  

 Even if more and more seniors are becoming internet and SNS users there are still many that are not. Many older adults and seniors are reported as being cautious regarding social networking sites in specific and internet use in general (Lehtinen et al. 2009). Some of the fears that have previously been documented are related to a view on internet as a dangerous place (Lehtinen et al. 2009), SNS as an arena for socially unacceptable behavior (Lehtinen et al. 2009). Lehtinen et al. (2009, p. 51) even state that: “From this it follows that SNSs do not seem to fit the everyday communication of older adults well”. Overcoming obstacles for inclusion in the information society, of which social media in undeniably an important part, is an important challenge emphasized by a number of national and international efforts (e.g. UNECE 2007, CEC 2007).

 Michael Arnold (2003) used the two-faced god Janus as a metaphor to describe how a certain kind of technology functioning in one way in one context may have consequences or implications of one kind, and a contrary set of consequences or implications in another. While Arnold used the mobile phone as an example for describing this characteristic of technology, he could just as well, due to ubiquitous internet access and widely spread computer literacy, have used social networking sites.

 Even if previous research have addressed and characterized early use of social networking services among seniors, there are still a lot left to be done. While we have come to know a great deal about reasons, benefits and consequences of online presence and reasons for resistance, we know very little about the process through which seniors manage their personal boundaries in relation to SNS. This is what this paper addresses, the way that seniors let, or do not let, aspects of SNS become a part of their lives. This is a fundamental question in strive towards inclusion of all segments of citizens to be part of the information society.

 Empirically, the paper is based on a three yearlong qualitative study of senior’s use of internet and social media (AGNES – ageing in an networked society). We have conducted focus group interviews as well as individual interviews and the seniors have also kept diaries. The diaries contain their reflections on the processes through which they have come to involve Facebook in their everyday life. Apart from capturing the dynamics of the ways that seniors start using social media, the paper does as well contribute to knowledge about how to methodologically explore senior’s IT-use.

En trend bland dagens studenter är att dela sitt engagemang, inte bara mellan ett rikt fritidsliv och heltidsstudier utan också mellan deltidsarbete och extrakurser. Detta är en omständighet som kan medföra problem för studentens studieresultat då en fragmentering av vardagen uppstår. Inom arbetskontexter har det sedan en tid florerat en mängd system ämnade att stödja tidshantering i vardagen. Avsikten med dessa Getting Things Done (GTD) tillämpningar är att hjälpa individer att bättre hantera sin tid, hinna med de uppgifter man åtagit sig och att reducera stress. Den studie som denna artikel rapporterar genomfördes i syfte att utvärdera i vilken omfattning en studentgrupp av idag finner värde och stöd i att använda ett GTD-system under en campuskurs. Den programvara som de 50 studenterna använde sig av under en period av fyra veckor kallas Plancake, är gratis och internetbaserad. Användandet säkerställdes genom att en examination infördes i slutet av kursen där besvarandet av ett antal frågor förutsatte en viss tids användning. Resultaten av försöket visar att Plancake i dess nuvarande form inte upplevdes som ett särskilt värdefullt stöd för studenterna och att en rad förändringar vad gäller applikationens funktionalitet och introduktion får anses som nödvändig.

In recent decades technology-induced interruptions emerged as a key object of study in HCI and CSCW research, but until recently the social dimension of interruptions has been relatively neglected. The focus of existing research on interruptions has been mostly on their direct effects on the persons whose activities are interrupted. Arguably, however, it is also necessary to take into account the “ripple effect” of interruptions, that is, indirect consequences of interruptions within the social context of an activity, to properly understand interrupting behavior and provide advanced technological support for handling interruptions. This paper reports an empirical study, in which we examine a set of facets of the social context of interruptions, which we identified in a previous conceptual analysis. The results suggest that people do take into account various facets of the social context when making decisions about whether or not it is appropriate to interrupt another person.