In recent years technology has made a huge leap forward, becoming a big part of our lives and more advanced than we ever imagined [1]. However, it's important to acknowledge that there are downsides to this increment in technology. Technology can affect our mental well-being, and companies have little regard for ethics, safety, or privacy [2]. We can see this impact in the form of an increase in depression and decreasing social connections due to our reliance on technology [2], [3]. But I believe there is also an opportunity to use technology to reverse this effect.
As an example, people with dementia often face symptoms of loneliness and depression [6]. However, the use of social technologies can make them feel less lonely and reduce chronic illness [4], [5]. During my master's, I witnessed how giving attention to these individuals could make their day. This experience reinforced my idea that the most important thing for a designer is to improve a person's well-being, whether it's their mental state or physical health. While a conversational agent may never replace the social aspect completely, it can help facilitate conversation and contribute to people's well-being through meaningful interactions and self-acceptance.
When designing, I believe the user should be at the centre of the design process, along with other stakeholders. This means creating products that are accessible and easily understood by everyone and actively involving the users throughout the design journey. For more complex technologies like artificial intelligence, it also means giving users some control over their data. When people feel in control, it builds trust and autonomy [7]. Ultimately, artificial intelligence should serve as a supportive tool in our daily lives, bringing joy and enhancing overall well-being. Designers have a responsibility to learn to work with these tools while prioritizing user interests such as privacy, safety, well-being, and individual desires, all while considering the collective impact. Products should be accessible, user-centred, and mindful of the user's needs rather than solely driven by profit.
What I like the most about being a designer is finding solutions for problems people experience. In a way, I see designers as professional problem solvers, piecing together the right solutions for each individual, because everyone is unique. I like everyday issues the most, like societal, lifestyle-related, or mental health. What I find most important from a product is that at the end of the day, it was useful and either seamless enough to not frustrate the user, or actively increase their well-being.
As technology progresses, more of the design space is transferred towards AI and advanced technology and how they can be implemented for everyday use. This, coupled with my interest in computers and data, made me focus on Math, Data & Computing during my master's, moving away from my earlier focus on physical products in my bachelor's studies. I am interested in how AI can enhance well-being and understand its societal impact. This motivated me to develop a Debatably with my peers.
Since then, I continued with the design of conversational agents with a focus on therapy and motivation (e.g. Motivation Chatbot and Alma) merging my interests in machine learning, AI, and societal challenges that I find personally interesting. However, I realized that purely digital products aren't something I want to continue with. This aspired me to explore how I could combine physical elements with digital products, so they can enhance each other.
Functionality and accessibility are the most important aspects of product design in my opinion. That's why I developed expertise in Technology & Realization. It allows me to create minimalist and practical designs, which reflect my work style and personality. I prioritize functionality over aesthetics, something likely influenced by my background in engineering. Aesthetics should serve the purpose of enhancing user interactions and making a better user experience.
While some might perceive me as pessimistic due to my habit to criticize, I see it as a strength. I feel like if we stop criticizing, we can't progress. However, my introverted personality sometimes makes it difficult for me to speak up when I am not familiar with the people around me, despite that I still try to overcome this limitation through projects involving challenging target groups and taking on tasks like presenting in a group dynamic. Furthermore, I am often perceived as calm and while I do criticize I am not unreasonable, but rather empathetic and always willing to help, which reflects in my work and interests.
[1] Y. Kim, M. Reza, J. McGrenere, en D. Yoon, ˜Designers Characterize Naturalness in Voice User Interfaces: Their Goals, Practices, and Challenges, in Proceedings of the 2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, in CHI. New York, NY, USA: Association for Computing Machinery, mei 2021, pp. 1-13. doi: 10.1145/3411764.3445579.
[2] K. Rajnerowicz, ˜Will AI Take Your Job? Fear of AI and AI Trends for 2023, statistics & tech library, 19 december 2022. https://www.tidio.com/blog/ai-trends/
[3] D. G. Weeks, J. L. Michela, L. A. Peplau, en M. E. Bragg, ˜Relation between loneliness and depression: A structural equation analysis, J. Pers. Soc. Psychol., vol. 39, pp. 1238-1244, 1980, doi: 10.1037/h0077709.
[4] William. J. Chopic, ˜The Benefits of Social Technology Use Among Older Adults Are Mediated by Reduced Loneliness | Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 1 september 2016 https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2016.0151.
[5] E. Hoge, D. Bickham, en J. Cantor, Digital Media, Anxiety, and Depression in Children’, American Academy of Pediatrics, 1 november 2017. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2016-1758G
[6] H. M. Bousardt, Using embodied conversational agents to combat loneliness in older adultsв: a scoping review, augustus 2022. http://essay.utwente.nl/92821/
[7] I. Benke, U. Gnewuch, en A. Maedche, ˜Understanding the impact of control levels over emotion-aware chatbots, Comput. Hum. Behav., vol. 129, p. 107122, apr. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.chb.2021.107122.