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Karapanos E, Gouveia R, Hassenzahl M, et al. Wellbeing in the Making: Peoples' Experiences with Wearable Activity Trackers. Psychol Well Being. 2016;6:4doi: 10.1186/s13612-016-0042-6.
Karapanos, E., Gouveia, R., Hassenzahl, M., & Forlizzi, J. (2016). Wellbeing in the Making: Peoples' Experiences with Wearable Activity Trackers. Psychology of well-being, 64. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13612-016-0042-6
Karapanos, Evangelos, et al. "Wellbeing in the Making: Peoples' Experiences with Wearable Activity Trackers." Psychology of well-being vol. 6 (2016): 4. doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13612-016-0042-6
Karapanos E, Gouveia R, Hassenzahl M, Forlizzi J. Wellbeing in the Making: Peoples' Experiences with Wearable Activity Trackers. Psychol Well Being. 2016;6:4. doi: 10.1186/s13612-016-0042-6. Epub 2016 Jun 14. PMID: 27376017; PMCID: PMC4908170.
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Psychol Well Being. 2016;6:4. doi: 10.1186/s13612-016-0042-6. Epub 2016 Jun 14.

Wellbeing in the Making: Peoples' Experiences with Wearable Activity Trackers.

Psychology of well-being

Evangelos Karapanos, Rúben Gouveia, Marc Hassenzahl, Jodi Forlizzi

Affiliations

  1. Cyprus University of Technology, 3036 Limassol, Cyprus.
  2. Madeira-ITI, University of Madeira, Funchal, Portugal.
  3. Experience and Interaction, Folkwang University of the Arts, Essen, Germany.
  4. Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA USA.

PMID: 27376017 PMCID: PMC4908170 DOI: 10.1186/s13612-016-0042-6

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Wearable activity trackers have become a viable business opportunity. Nevertheless, research has raised concerns over their potentially detrimental effects on wellbeing. For example, a recent study found that while counting steps with a pedometer increased steps taken throughout the day, at the same time it decreased the enjoyment people derived from walking. This poses a serious threat to the incorporation of healthy routines into everyday life. Most studies aim at proving the effectiveness of activity trackers. In contrast, a wellbeing-oriented perspective calls for a deeper understanding of how trackers create and mediate meaningful experiences in everyday life.

METHODS: We present a study of real life experiences with three wearable activity trackers:

RESULTS: We reveal a two-dimensional structure of users' experience driven by the needs of

CONCLUSIONS: The study highlights that activity trackers can be more than "tools" to change behavior. Through incorporation in daily life, they offer new social experiences, new ways of boosting our self-esteem and getting closer to our ideal selves.

Keywords: Personal informatics; User experience; Wearable activity trackers

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