Abstract
This paper presents outcomes of a PhD research that explores the relations between service design, health and today’s social media specifically mobile technologies. Mobile and social media tools offer new opportunities for a more user centered, socially connected, and economically sustainable healthcare system. A major focus of research is to understand how to bring users to involve in their own health management through mobile narratives social networks to incite social interaction in promoting healthier lifestyles. This research aims to identify the problem and explore answers through a practice-based approach. It is based on research through design model and explores the practices and processes of design through the participation in a focus project. Locast Health Pproject aims to provide a helpful set of tools for teen’s risk at obesity to record their sociopsychological environment and everyday health routines through participatory workshops. Video diaries, created by a mobile application, visualized & shared in real-time on a location-based platform. The exchange of information affects health decision-making with the aim to create a long-term behavioral change towards a healthier lifestyle. Results show that it is not far to imagine the use of mobile technology and civic media creation as a tool to understand correlation of behaviors and encourage active participation in your own health. Locast Health Diary helps developing awareness however, without an expert participation it may not be sufficient to determinate behavioral change. The research aims to explore the designer’s role, its relation with other disciplines in designing service for a healthier lifestyle and investigate the use of participatory and service design tools for the engagement of users in their long-term healthcare management.
Keywords
service design, healthcare prevention, social media, mobile phones, video diaries, location based platform and context awareness
Citation
Arslan, P., Costa, F., and Casalegno, F. (2012) Service Design for Social Interaction: Mobile technologies for a healthier lifestyle, in Israsena, P., Tangsantikul, J. and Durling, D. (eds.), Research: Uncertainty Contradiction Value - DRS International Conference 2012, 1-4 July, Bangkok, Thailand. https://dl.designresearchsociety.org/drs-conference-papers/drs2012/researchpapers/4
Service Design for Social Interaction: Mobile technologies for a healthier lifestyle
This paper presents outcomes of a PhD research that explores the relations between service design, health and today’s social media specifically mobile technologies. Mobile and social media tools offer new opportunities for a more user centered, socially connected, and economically sustainable healthcare system. A major focus of research is to understand how to bring users to involve in their own health management through mobile narratives social networks to incite social interaction in promoting healthier lifestyles. This research aims to identify the problem and explore answers through a practice-based approach. It is based on research through design model and explores the practices and processes of design through the participation in a focus project. Locast Health Pproject aims to provide a helpful set of tools for teen’s risk at obesity to record their sociopsychological environment and everyday health routines through participatory workshops. Video diaries, created by a mobile application, visualized & shared in real-time on a location-based platform. The exchange of information affects health decision-making with the aim to create a long-term behavioral change towards a healthier lifestyle. Results show that it is not far to imagine the use of mobile technology and civic media creation as a tool to understand correlation of behaviors and encourage active participation in your own health. Locast Health Diary helps developing awareness however, without an expert participation it may not be sufficient to determinate behavioral change. The research aims to explore the designer’s role, its relation with other disciplines in designing service for a healthier lifestyle and investigate the use of participatory and service design tools for the engagement of users in their long-term healthcare management.