Breaking the Ice with Group Flow: A Collaborative VR Serious Game for Relationship Enhancement

It is usually hard for unfamiliar partners to rapidly 'break the ice' in the early stage of relationship establishment, which hinders the development of relationship and even affects the team productivity. To solve this problem, we proposed a collaborative serious game for icebreaking by combining immersive virtual reality (VR) with brain-computer interface based on the team flow framework. We designed a multiplayer collaboration task with the theme of fighting COVID-19 and proposed an approach to improve empathy between team members by sharing their real-time mental state in VR;in addition, we propose an EEG-based method for dynamic evaluation and enhancement of group flow experience to achieve better team collaboration. Then, we developed a prototype system and performed a user study. Results show that our method has good ease of use and can significantly reduce the psychological distance among team members. Especially for unfamiliar partners, both functions of mental state sharing and group flow regulation enhancement can significantly reduce the psychological distance. © 2023 IEEE.

Designing an Empathy Training for Depression Prevention Using Virtual Reality and a Preliminary Study

As virtual reality (VR) is labeled by many as 'an ultimate empathy machine,' immersive VR applications have the potential to assist in empathy training for mental healthcare such as depression [21]. In responding to the increasing numbers of diagnosed depression throughout COVID-19, a first-person VR adventure game called 'Schwer' was designed and prototyped by the authors' research team to provide a social support environment for depression treatment. To continue the study and assess the training effectiveness for an appropriate level of empathy, this current article includes a brief survey on data analytics models and features to accumulate evidence for the next phase of the study, an interactive game-level design for the 'Reconstruction' stage, and a preliminary study with data collection. The preliminary study was conducted with a post-game interview to evaluate the design of the levels and their effectiveness in empathy training. Results showed that the game was rated as immersive by all participants. Feedback on the avatar design indicated that two out of three of the non-player characters (NPCs) have made the intended effect. Participants showed mostly positive opinion towards their experienced empathy and provided feedback on innovative teleport mechanism and game interaction. The findings from the literature review and the results of the preliminary study will be used to further improve the existing system and add the data analytics model training. The long-term research goal is to contribute to the healthcare field by developing a dynamic AI-based biofeedback immersive VR system in assisting depression prevention. © 2023 IEEE.

VRChoir: Exploring Remote Choir Rehearsals via Virtual Reality

Choral singing is a creative process that involves continuous, organized, nonverbal communication between conductors and singers. Since the COVID pandemic, choirs are moved to videoconferencing systems for rehearsals. However, the limitation of 2D video interfaces restricts the nonverbal communication, spatial awareness, and sense of presence in choral rehearsal. We designed, implemented, and evaluated VRChoir, a VR-based platform for choir rehearsals to improve these pain points. We evaluated VRChoir with conductors and singers with experience rehearsing in a remote environment. Our findings reveal that VR can be a starting point for improving the sense of presence and quality of non-verbal communication in remote music rehearsals. © 2023 IEEE.

Towards Augmented Reality Guiding Systems: An Engineering Design of an Immersive System for Complex 3D Printing Repair Process

Over the past decade, additive manufacturing (AM) has become widely adopted for both prototyping and, more recently, end-use products. In particular, fused deposition modeling (FDM) is the most widespread form of additive manufacturing due to its low cost, ease of use, and versatility. While additive processes are relatively automated, many steps in their operation and repair require trained human operators. Finding such operators can be difficult, as highlighted during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Augmented reality (AR) systems could significantly help address this challenge by automating the training for 3D printer operators. Given multidimensional design choices, however, a research gap exists in the system requirements for such immersive guidance. To address this need, we explore the applicability of AR to guide users through a repair process. In that context, we report on the system design as well as the results of the AR system assessment in a qualitative study with experts. © 2023 IEEE.

Human-centered design as a tool to improve employee experience: The case of a US plant-based food manufacturer

U.S. organizations are facing a self-resignation problem. Employees are leaving their jobs in rates never seen before mainly due to human dissatisfactions. The high staff turnover rates put organizations in jeopardy compromising their entire operation. Organizations that are not able to retain and attract local talent can incur in ergonomics, quality, productivity problems and additional business risks. We propose an empirical study conducted in a plant-based food company located in the Northwest of the United States, facing a turnover problem, to bring new knowledge in the field of employee experience. Based on the Human-Centered Design (HCD) and case study methodologies, we conducted 152 in-depth interviews with the operational workforce from the company of the case study to discover the employee needs. Later, we evaluated data obtained from the interviewees applying HCD principles (convergent and divergent techniques). After grouping our data, we identified ten themes "communication", "training", "accountability", "management", "trust", 'safety", "equipment functionality", "favoritism", "food safety", "recognition", "culture", and "work environment". We propose the themes can help decision makers to ideate organizational strategies to improve the employee experience perspective by aiming the satisfaction of human needs and human's role in the manufacturing setting.

Preparing for future pandemics: A science-backed, human-centered framework

Researchers, teacher educators, frontline practitioners, policymakers, families, students, and community members need to understand the short-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and plan effectively for future pandemics by having a shared understanding of mental health and well-being. This chapter defines mental health, summarizes the known impacts of COVID-19 on mental health, describes lessons learned, and offers a model to guide school and community stakeholders as they prepare effectively for future pandemics. To maximize successful proactive and reactive approaches, the chapter concludes with a Call to Action for science-backed, human-centered planning, preparation, response, and recovery. Planning and preparing effectively for future pandemics and ongoing threats requires stakeholders to understand that large-scale trauma events impact not only the mental health of children and youth but also those who care for and educate them. In responding to the present public health crisis and in ameliorating further harm, not only is there an urgent need to strengthen current school-based mental health services but there is also a vital need to better prepare and plan for future pandemics. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Can You Smell Me Now: Towards a Remote Olfactory Study

The sense of smell-olfaction involves the natural processing of ambient information in real-time. This process allows humans to detect danger, identify familiarities, and form lasting memories. During the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers were presented with challenges related to conducting in-person olfactory-based user studies. In this paper, we explore user experience and perception during olfactory-based interactions (OBI). Based upon previous literature, we propose an approach to offer future researchers a methodology for conducting olfactory-based user studies remotely. In particular, we explored a paper prototyping medium as an olfactory display. This experiment demonstrates the remote investigation of a complex sensory functionality during high mental work-load levels while participants (N=12) engage in an online memory game. Furthermore, this work seeks to inspire further discussion of olfactory-based user studies that explore functions related to human moods, memory, and behavior.

Using an Immersive Video Environment to Assess Pedestrians' Compliance With COVID Distance Keeping Interventions

Physical distancing is a key measure to slow the spread of many highly infectious diseases, e.g. COVID-19. Streetscape interventions such as pedestrian signage can contribute to ensuring distances are kept, but it is unclear to what extent people comply with these in practice. This paper tackles this question using an immersive video environment to realistically simulate real-life streetscapes in the lab. In a controlled user study, we augmented panoramic video footage with pedestrian one-way street signage and recorded route decisions to assess compliance with distance keeping measures. Our results indicate that such signage affects routing decisions and can thus help pedestrians to avoid crowded situations where distance keeping is difficult. We also identified further factors affecting decisions and a correlation between intention to comply and actual compliance. The experimental method we used enabled us to effectively and safely carry out a study of a phenomenon that in the real world depends on interaction with the physical environment. This method may have applications in other areas in which simulations of physical environments are important.

Building Virtual Health Training Tools for Residents: A Design Thinking Approach.

The COVID-19 pandemic drove a rapid transition to virtual care experiences for graduate medical trainees. Core training competencies have expanded to incorporate virtual contexts, however there is limited knowledge of the optimal design of virtual care training tools for learners. In this study, we describe the application of a Design Thinking approach to the identification and co-design of novel training tools to support residents and precepting attending physicians in virtual ambulatory care practice. We applied the model of "Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test" via a mixed methods approach to (1) explore the needs, preferences, and concerns of Internal Medicine residents and outpatient precepting attendings regarding virtual ambulatory care training environments, and (2) evaluate, prototype, and test potential training tools. Eleven residents and eight attending physicians participated. Identified learner needs and problem areas included: improving virtual visit technical skills; acquiring virtual communication skills; adapting to the loss of shared in-person learning space and optimizing virtual learning environments; remediating non-virtual procedural competencies; and educating on new documentation requirements. Key solution areas included: virtual precepting support tools; digital information and education dissemination tools; and strategies for management of technical issues. Several prototypes were proposed, with a single tool (a virtual preceptor tip sheet) deployed in clinical practice. Residents found the workshop program improved their understanding of Design Thinking and its relevance to healthcare. Ultimately, Design Thinking can be deployed to engage medical trainees and precepting attendings in the effective development of novel educational tools for the virtual care learning environment.

Learning analytics dashboards: What do students actually ask for?

Learning analytics (LA) has been opening new opportunities to support learning in higher education (HE). LA dashboards are an important tool in providing students with insights into their learning progress, and predictions, leading to reflection and adaptation of learning plans and habits. Based on a human-centered approach, we present a perspective of students, as essential stakeholders, on LA dashboards. We describe a longitudinal study, based on survey methodology. The study included two iterations of a survey, conducted with second-year ICT students in 2017 (N = 222) and 2022 (N = 196). The study provided insights into the LA dashboard features the students find the most useful to support their learning. The students highly appreciated features related to short-term planning and organization of learning, while they were cautious about comparison and competition with other students, finding such features possibly demotivating. We compared the 2017 and 2022 results to establish possible changes in the students' perspectives with the COVID-19 pandemic. The students' awareness of the benefits of LA has increased, which may be related to the strong focus on online learning during the pandemic. Finally, a factor analysis yielded a dashboard model with five underlying factors: comparison, planning, predictions, extracurricular, and teachers. © 2023 ACM.

Home Care 2041: Signals from the Future

Technological evolution has made available tools capable of connecting the patient to treating doctors and health facilities for ordinary activities and carrying out medical investigations directly at the patient's home, thanks to increasingly sophisticated devices. The restrictions on the movement of people due to the COVID-19 pandemic have encouraged the use of tools already available to doctors and patients but have also accelerated the development of ongoing projects. The Italian Society of Ergonomics and Human Factors SIE has created a multidisciplinary working group that has tried to imagine the shape of home care in the next twenty years. The study is based on integrating the "Human-Centered Design” and "Strategic Foresight” processes. According to their skills, the eight researchers have tried to identify the trends that will most influence the future, designing the possible scenarios in which home care will take place. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Improving the Engagement of Underrepresented People in Health Research Through Equity-Centered Design Thinking: Qualitative Study and Process Evaluation for the Development of the Grounding Health Research in Design Toolkit.

BACKGROUND: Health inequalities are rooted in historically unjust differences in economic opportunities, environment, access to health care services, and other social determinants. Owing to these health inequalities, the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected underserved populations, notably people of color, incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals, and those unable to physically distance themselves from others. However, people most strongly impacted by health disparities, and the pandemic, are not frequently engaged in research, either as researchers or as participants, resulting in slow progress toward improving health equity. Establishing ways to foster the engagement of historically excluded people is crucial to improving health equity through patient-centered health research. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the use of equity-centered design thinking (EDT) for engaging community members in research prioritization related to COVID-19. The co-design methods and subsequent production of a toolkit that can be used for engagement were assessed through process evaluation and qualitative methods. METHODS: Process evaluation and qualitative inquiry, using reflexive thematic analysis, were undertaken to examine the use of EDT. Patient community members and stakeholders remotely partnered with design and health researchers in a year-long digital process to cocreate capacity-building tools for setting agenda for research regarding the impact of COVID-19 on health outcomes. Through a series of 3 workshops, 5 community partners engaged in EDT activities to identify critical challenges for the health and well-being of their communities. The subsequent tools were tested with 10 health researchers who provided critical input over the course of 2 workshops. Interviews with co-designers, project materials, and feedback sessions were used in the process evaluation and finalization of an equity-centered toolkit for community engagement in research. Data from the co-design process, meetings, workshops, and interviews were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis to identify salient themes. RESULTS: Process evaluation illustrated how the EDT co-design process offered an approach to engage patient partners and community stakeholders in health-related research around COVID-19. The participants expressed satisfaction with design thinking approaches, including creative activities and iterative co-design, as a means of working together. Thematic analysis identified 3 key themes: the value of authentic partnerships, building trust and empathy through design, and fostering candid dialogue around health and social issues impacting historically underrepresented and underinvested communities. CONCLUSIONS: The project addressed the need to test EDT strategies for fostering inclusive community engagement in health research agenda setting and provided an alternative to traditional top-down models. Despite the increasing use of human-centered design in health, few projects explicitly include equity in design thinking approaches. The use of methods and tools to intentionally engage underrepresented stakeholders in the process of research agenda setting and equitably sharing power between researchers and community members may improve health research, ultimately improving health equity.

A framework for designing AI systems that support community wellbeing.

Introduction: Designing artificial intelligence (AI) to support health and wellbeing is an important and broad challenge for technologists, designers, and policymakers. Drawing upon theories of AI and cybernetics, this article offers a design framework for designing intelligent systems to optimize human wellbeing. We focus on the production of wellbeing information feedback loops in complex community settings, and discuss the case study of My Wellness Check, an intelligent system designed to support the mental health and wellbeing needs of university students and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The basis for our discussion is the community-led design of My Wellness Check, an intelligent system that supported the mental health and wellbeing needs of university students and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our system was designed to create an intelligent feedback loop to assess community wellbeing needs and to inform community action. This article provides an overview of our longitudinal assessment of students and staff wellbeing (n = 20,311) across two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: We further share the results of a controlled experiment (n = 1,719) demonstrating the enhanced sensitivity and user experience of our context-sensitive wellbeing assessment. Discussion: Our approach to designing "AI for community wellbeing," may generalize to the systematic improvement of human wellbeing in other human-computer systems for large-scale governance (e.g., schools, businesses, NGOs, platforms). The two main contributions are: 1) showcasing a simple way to draw from AI theory to produce more intelligent human systems, and 2) introducing a human-centered, community-led approach that may be beneficial to the field of AI.

Designing an AI Assistant for Student Telehealth: A Case Study Using Human-Centered Design

The interactions of AI systems in human-autonomy teams are designed to support user understanding, confidence, and trust. This research puts these useful interactions in a broader context of how a healthcare team could work to best meet the goals of the human user. The use of technology including AI and automation solutions to deliver various virtual healthcare services has substantially increased over the past two years following the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper presents a case study on following a service design thinking methodology to investigate the potential impact of AI solutions on the patient-user experience targeted at university student patients using telehealth services. The service design thinking approach is focused on the whole user experience and quality of service. It incorporates temporal processes and considerations of the user's needs throughout their healthcare journey. User needs and requirements were elicited using interviews with a subject matter expert from the healthcare domain and with graduate student users. The collected data were analyzed and used to create two personas and storyboard scenarios. Then, three patient journey maps were created. The first 'As Is' journey map demonstrates the patients' pain points. Then, two alternative journey maps were developed to illustrate solutions using AI assistance, providing a holistic view of the patient experience during the telehealth journey. Low-fidelity prototypes and wireframes were produced in the prototyping phase. The added value of the journey map is that it shows where in the patient journey the AI assistant should best be integrated to reduce the risk and increase patient benefits. Moreover, the project identifies five main stages of the telehealth journey and offers key design improvements at each stage. For example, the process improvements point out how using an AI assistant can reduce time and effort by guiding the patient through the decision-making process to navigate the care options. Similarly, the AI assists the healthcare provider by gathering and integrating the patients' required health information to accelerate the care process. © 2022 IEEE.

Applying Human-Centered Data Science to Healthcare: Hyperlocal Modeling of COVID-19 Hospitalizations

Algorithms as a component of decision-making in healthcare are becoming increasingly prevalent and AI in healthcare has become a topic of mass consideration. However, pursuing these methods without a human-centered framework can lead to bias, thus incorporating discrimination on behalf of the algorithm upon implementation. By examining each step of the design process from a human-centered perspective and incorporating stakeholder motivations, algorithmic implementation can become vastly useful, and more accurately tailored to stakeholder needs. We examine previous work in healthcare executed with a human-centered design, to analyze the multiple frameworks which effectively create human-centered application, as extended to healthcare. © 2023 Owner/Author.

Techniques for using VRChat to Replace On-site Experiments

In this paper, we present a technique to conduct on-site laboratory experiments using VRChat, a social Virtual Reality platform. COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges and restrictions on re-searchers in running experiments for Human-Computer Interaction research. Hence, universities and institutions set guidelines for social distancing and encourage people to work from home. Therefore, participants are harder to recruit for experiments that run in a physical laboratory. Our technique uses VRChat as a substitution for running on-site experiments despite social restrictions. We exploit features in VRChat to enable researchers to run experiments with domestically recruited participants. Furthermore, we propose a hassle-free method to retrieve study data. This paper also discusses and offers design considerations to run an on-site experiment using VRChat over a homemade system. © 2022 IEEE.

Virtual Reality Therapy for the Psychological Well-being of Palliative Care Patients in Hong Kong

In this paper we introduce novel Virtual Reality (VR) and Aug-mented Reality (AR) treatments to improve the psychological well being of patients in palliative care, based on interviews with a clin-ical psychologist who has successfully implemented VR assisted interventions on palliative care patients in the Hong Kong hospital system. Our VR and AR assisted interventions are adaptations of traditional palliative care therapies which simultaneously facilitate patients communication with family and friends while isolated in hospital due to physical weakness and COVID-19 related restrictions. The first system we propose is a networked, metaverse platform for palliative care patients to create customized virtual environments with therapists, family and friends which function as immersive and collaborative versions of 'life review' and 'reminiscence therapy'. The second proposed system will investigate the use of Mixed Real-ity telepresence and haptic touch in an AR environment, which will allow palliative care patients to physically feel friends and family in a virtual space, adding to the sense of presence and immersion in that environment. © 2022 IEEE.

Learning from COVID 19. A Comparison of Innovative Design Solutions for Human-Centered Healthcare Facilities

The novel 2019 Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has revealed numerous challenges in coordinating and arranging hospital spaces at both national and international level. The overwhelming number of hospital admissions of people affected by COVID-19 has highlighted difficulties in managing, updating, and refurbishing healthcare spaces. The objective of this study is to provide meta-design indications that demonstrate the value of spatial design in containing pandemic health emergencies and improving quality for different healthcare users. Utilized research methods include a review of existing literature on the current state of the art, analysis of design solutions that emerged in response to past pandemics and comparison of existing planning tools on the subject. Additionally, given the contemporaneity of the issue, a cross-sectional survey was used to collect and compare the experiences and design strategies adopted by some selected Italian hospital. The results of the study highlight the most effective and recurrent solutions that have supported health action in the fight against COVID-19. Emphasis was placed on solutions with a human-centered approach, as well as those that seek to promote the physical and psychological well-being of all users involved. In conclusion, the resulting meta-design indications represent a starting point for developing detailed design solution to enhance pandemic readiness. Additional research is needed to support healthcare facilities in becoming more welcoming and efficient while improving COVID-19 patient care and protecting healthcare workers. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

International Collaboration to Develop a Remote Monitoring Web App for COVID-19 Patients in Armenia: Design and Development With Agile Methodology.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 has led to over 500 million cases and 6.2 million deaths around the world. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) like Armenia face unique infrastructure, financial, and capacity challenges that in many cases result in worse outcomes. Health care facilities across Armenia experienced a shortage of resources, including hospital beds and oxygen, which was further exacerbated by the war with neighboring Azerbaijan. Without a framework for home-based care, health care facilities were severely strained by COVID-19 patients who had prolonged oxygen requirements but were otherwise clinically stable. OBJECTIVE: This paper describes our approach to establishing an international collaboration to develop a web app to support home monitoring of patients with COVID-19 with persistent oxygen requirements. METHODS: The app was developed using a rapid, coordinated, and collaborative approach involving an international group of clinicians, developers, and collaborators. Health screening, monitoring, and discharge forms were developed into a lightweight OpenMRS web app and customized for the local Armenian context. RESULTS: The software was designed and developed over 2 months using human-centered design and agile sprints. Once live, 5087 patient records were created for 439 unique patients. CONCLUSIONS: This project suggests a promising framework for designing and implementing remote monitoring programs in LMICs, despite pandemic and geopolitical challenges.

Applied artificial intelligence in healthcare: Listening to the winds of change in a post-COVID-19 world.

This editorial article aims to highlight advances in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in five areas: Collaborative AI, Multimodal AI, Human-Centered AI, Equitable AI, and Ethical and Value-based AI in order to cope with future complex socioeconomic and public health issues.