Digital Habits CS 147 Assignment 1 Grace Zhao

Digital Habits CS 147: Assignment 1 Grace Zhao, Gizem Incesu, Tassica Lim, Dorien Simon

Meet the Team! Gizem Incesu CS’ 23 Grace Zhao CS’ 21, MS&E’ 22 Tassica Lim CS’ 21 Dorien Simon CS’ 23 2

Needfinding Methodology

Goal Understand university student’s digital habits 4

Topics Explored Devices Used What kinds of digital devices were people using? Use of Free Time Use of Device How did their digital devices affect how they spent their free time? How did they use their digital devices? 5

What devices do you use? Which devices take up the most time? What do you use your devices for? How often are you on your devices each day? What apps do you have on your phone and why? Questions Which apps do you use the most? How do you think online education impacted your screen time? How does time spent on your devices affect your mood? What is your opinion about your screen time? 6

Interviewees 7

“ I got Tik. Tok because I felt disconnected from everyone else C, Chemical Engineering Senior at Princeton Moderate-user Image redacted for anonymity 8

“ I use Instagram on Safari, but I try to limit that because it’s a waste of time A, Masters student at Cardiff University, UK Little to no social media use Image redacted for anonymity 9

“ I’m definitely way more addicted to my phone now than I ever was before Z, Junior at Duke Extreme user Image redacted for anonymity 10

“ It’s time consuming. One post leads to another, one video leads to another. . . B, Senior at Pacific Lutheran University Little to no social media use Image redacted for anonymity 11

Empathy Map 12

SAY "I just need to kill time. . . [Tik. Tok] is good timewaster" "When I was on campus, [screen time] was easier to manage because I had people that keep me accountable" “If I receive a message, I’ll pick it up and stay on” "I have an attention issue. I will make sure my phone is far away from me" “In online interactions, [there’s] less conversation and more typing” “I might watch some You. Tube videos, but it’s related to coursework so I feel better about it” "my eyes start burning because I spent several hours on the phone" "[Instagram] doesn't feel personal to me" “Knowing [social media apps] are on my phone is a distraction” "the great thing about that is I don't think it uses the algorithm on you, so the videos aren't really targeted towards me, so I lose interest quickly. . . " ". . . So I can scratch that itch" 13

DO Uses laptop mainly for studying and classes Watches recorded lectures on 2 x speed Sometimes throws her phone across the room during lecture gets off phone when eyes start hurting has screen time widget on her phone, looks at end of the day in class, responds to snapchats and texts right away Checks phone when he receives a notification and stays on during lecture makes sure to type everything to make sure she’s paying attention Tries to be active, do house work, or meet friends in person Opens Tik. Tok. com on Safari when the app is deleted Deletes Tik. Tok when school starts Gets on phone when there’s nothing else to do Only uses social media to get in touch with people 14

THINK Phone is convenient when out and about Having apps on your phone is dangerous Better to delete the apps. Safer. Less tempting Social media provides them with no constructive benefit A phone is more for playing while a laptop is for working Having a schedule is helpful She has decent digital habits but can do better Meeting people in person is more enjoyable Recognizes that they’re addicted, tries to have workarounds Social media is useful for communication but not entertainment Social media can be addictive and distracting Ads create a detached and hostile online environment Youtube is more educational than Instagram Algorithms target users to feed them content to stay on their app 15

FEEL Easily tempted or manipulated by social media Anything related to learning is productive Doing productive tasks on their phone makes them feel better Lost without structure or schedule Conflicted between staying connected and battling addiction likes having control over a session on Youtube, feeling responsible Detached when watching lectures live (but online) Scared of judgement of bad digital habits Bored with Social Media but has nothing else to do Disgusted with wasting time on social media and not feeling in control wants to feel productive through movement/ change in environment Fear of disconnecting from friends 16

Insights 18

Contradictions ● Delete app only to use the platform on web browser ● Conscious of screen time but no change in habits ● Laptop vs. phone perception 19

Tensions ● Users have different relationships with different platforms ● Connecting with community online vs in person ● Different relationship with engaging with content on laptop vs phone 20

Surprises ● Digital habits change when around friends who they wants to impress ● One notification sucks people into using their phone longer ● A single app can increase screen usage by hours 21

Takeaways Insight Need Users are mainly on social media to maintain connections with their friends. A way to stay connected with friends Users don’t feel like social media is a good use of their time. A way to feel more productive on devices Users feel more in control when using social media apps in their web browser To feel in control of device usage without deleting apps 22

Screen Time Doesn’t Matter Social Users ➔ Heavy use of Tik. Tok, Insta, FB, and Snap ➔ Free time spent on these apps Feelings Time wasted Non-Users VS ➔ Avoids use of Tik. Tok, Insta, FB, etc. ➔ Use devices for communication/in fo Feelings Time well spent 23

More Exploration ● What makes someone feel good about their time on devices? ● What does “productive” digital use look like? ● How does social connection fit into “productive” digital use? 24

Summary 1 We explored user’s digital habits 2 We talked to college students on Zoom who varied in social media usage 3 4 People shared frustrations about the addictive nature of social media apps and a desire to be in control of their device usage Our next steps are to explore what makes people feel good about their screen usage, as well as gather more information about sentiment toward different devices 25

Questions? Link to our Empathy Map work: https: //miro. com/app/board/o 9 J_l. YNSz. YY=/