Smartphones for Improved Co-Located Interpersonal Communication

University of British Columbia, Computer Science

We are looking for couples who use Android smartphones to take part in a study entitled: “Smartphones for Improved Co-Located Interpersonal Communication”. As a participant, both of you need to have Android smartphones and agree to participate in the study. Both of you will be asked to provide basic demographic information and install two smartphone applications on your phones, one after another. The first application will run on your device for two weeks and collect information on your smartphone usage behavior. After two weeks, we will meet online (e.g., via Skype/Zoom or other online services), collect the data, and remove the application from your device. After removing the first application, we will send you a second application via email and ask you to run the app for four weeks. The second application will send you notifications when you continue using smartphones in the presence of your partner. After four weeks, we will again meet online, collect your smartphone usage data, and remove the app. Finally, we will ask you to provide your feedback on the app. The total time for this study is estimated at six weeks, and each participant will receive up to $50 for their participation ($100 in total). As a participant, you may decline to share data and withdraw from the study at any time.

Your Impact

We are interested in exploring ways to improve co-located interpersonal communication (i.e., interaction and communication between nearby individuals) through smartphones. More specifically, we want to investigate couples’ smartphone usage patterns such as what apps they use (e.g., social media, news), where they use (e.g., geolocations), and how long they use (e.g., app usage duration). This data will later be used to design a smartphone application that sends notifications to encourage users’ communicating with their co-located partner.

Eligibility Criteria

Study Tasks

Ethics

This study has been approved University of British Columbia Okanagan Research Ethics Board (H19-01032).

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