Tangible data visualization of physical activity for children and adolescents: A qualitative study of temporal transition of experiences

Eslambolchilar, Parisa ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4610-1643, Stawarz, Katarzyna ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9021-0615, Verdezoto Dias, Nervo ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5006-4262, Mcnarry, Melitta, Crossley, Sam G.M., Knowles, Zoe and Mackintosh, Kelly 2023. Tangible data visualization of physical activity for children and adolescents: A qualitative study of temporal transition of experiences. Journal of Child Computer Interaction 35 , 100565. 10.1016/j.ijcci.2023.100565

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Abstract

Children and adolescents in the UK are increasingly at risk of significant health problems due to physical inactivity. While activity trackers and fitness applications have focused on addressing this problem in youth, poor wear-time compliance and usability and accessibility issues have been frequently reported in the literature as barriers to engagement. Physicalization of data offers an alternative approach to engage with physical activity (PA). In this paper, we present the results of a seven-week qualitative study with 97 primary and secondary school children (8–14 years old). We took a temporal approach to collect children’s and adolescents’ perspectives in short video interviews as they received 3D-printed models representing their faded-weekly PA levels. Our findings showed that children’s and adolescents’ emotional engagement with the models remained high throughout the study, while their reflection on the models and their knowledge of what constitutes PA and its different types evolved over time. The findings from this temporal study suggest that tangible data visualization of PA evokes experiences such as embodied reflection, active learning, emotional engagement, and temporality of PA experience. Therefore, we argue that the motivational impact of regular tangible visualizations as a form of feedback should be considered alongside wearable trackers in addressing childhood inactivity.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Computer Science & Informatics
Publisher:	Elsevier
Related URLs:	https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/ar...
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	17 January 2023
Date of Acceptance:	2 January 2023
Last Modified:	03 May 2023 11:23
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/155867

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