Persuasive Computing

I got mostly aware of persuasive computing during last year’s ubicomp conference, and Yvonne Rodger’s paper Moving on from Weiser’s Vision of Calm Computing: Engaging UbiComp Experiences. Persuasive computing, in reaction to calm computing, aims at using technologies that motivate, facilitate and trigger changes in behavior and attitudes. The trend I believe mainly comes from the US due to the country’s weight and health problems.

One example is Julian Bleecker’s Flavonoid that transact actions and activities between the physical worlds and digital online worlds. Flavonoid is envisioned as a platform for a variety of embodiments. In one embodiment of the project concept, data feeds produced from the Flavonoid Kinesthometer is used to “bulk up” or “fatten up” its owner digital photograph on a social networking site, depending on whether he/she has been actively moving or sedentary in 1st Life. In another embodiment of the project concept, data feeds from the Flavonoid Kinesthometer slows one’s online character down in 2nd Life for lack of energy based on sedentary 1st Life behavior.

Early this month, the Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab (BJ Fogg, Dean Eackles) hosted the Mobile Persuasion 2007 conference. Joe McCarthy posted a summarized version of his 12 pages notes: Mobile Persuasion 2007: Triggering Changes in Attitudes and Behavior. From what I can read, the main use of technology to change people’s beliefs and behaviors are to: make the invisible visible, raise awareness of [bad] habits in communication, transportation (environmental issue), exercise (activity-induced energy expenditure (AEE) over the body mass index (BMI)) and diet, (persuasive) gaming.

Prior to CHI, the Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab will be hosting the Persuasive 07 conference.

Relation to my thesis: Same as for an calm vision of ubicomp, technology cannot persuade anyone who doesn’t already want to be want to be persuaded. The frontier between engagement and persuasiveness is still unclear to me. My recent posts on the new agendas of ubicomp can strengthen the introduction in my thesis.