arXiv subjects

Yan Guan

Publications and source records attributed to Yan Guan.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Beyond Usability: A UX Case Study on Using "Withdrawal Design" to Challenge Engagement Metrics in Social Robotics

Social robots for children with autism are often evaluated through engagement and interaction quality, assuming the robot acts as a social scaffold. We report a mixed-methods "withdrawal" study that tests a harder question: what changes when the robot is removed. In an 8-week home-based randomized controlled trial (N=40), children either retained a consumer social robot (Qrobot) or had it withdrawn after initial use. Quantitatively, continued access reduced anxiety (SCARED/RCADS), yet was associated with lower parent-reported social motivation and weaker gains in emotion recognition (SMS/RMET) compared to withdrawal. Interviews with guardians contextualized this divergence: removal sometimes prompted children to seek human interaction, while continued use could keep social behavior siloed within the child-robot dyad, despite exceptionally high usability (SUS). We synthesize a UXR point of view: for vulnerable users, "engagement" can mask ecological downsides. Success should be judged not by retention, but by designed separation that bridges back to human relationships.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2026

In the Middle, Not on Top: AI-Mediated Communication for Patient-Provider Care Relationships

Relationship-centered care relies on trust and meaningful connection. As AI enters clinical settings, we must ask not just what it can do, but how it should be positioned to support these values. We examine a "middle, not top" approach where AI mediates communication without usurping human judgment. Through studies of CLEAR, an asynchronous messaging system, we show how this configuration addresses real-world constraints like time pressure and uneven health literacy. We find that mediator affordances (e.g., availability, neutrality) redistribute interpretive work and reduce relational friction. Ultimately, we frame AI mediation as relational infrastructure, highlighting critical design tensions around framing power and privacy.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2026

52-Hz Whale Song: An Embodied VR Experience for Exploring Misunderstanding and Empathy

Experiences of being misunderstood often stem not from a lack of voice, but from mismatches between how individuals express themselves and how others listen. Such communicative mismatches arise across many social settings, including situations involving linguistic and cultural displacement. While prior HCI research has explored empathy through virtual reality, many approaches rely on narrative explanation, positioning users as observers rather than embodied participants. We present 52-Hz Whale Song, an embodied VR experience that explores miscommunication through metaphor and perspective-shifting. Inspired by the real-world "52-Hz whale," whose calls are not responded to by others, the experience uses this phenomenon as an experiential lens on communicative mismatch rather than representing any specific social group. Players progress through a three-act arc that moves from failed communication to agency and ultimately to mediation. A preliminary mixed-methods study (N = 30) suggests increased perspective-taking and reduced self-reported social distance in immigrant-related situations. This work highlights how embodied metaphor and role-shifting can support empathic engagement and offers transferable design insights for empathy-oriented interactive systems.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2026

Misty Forest VR: Turning Real ADHD Attention Patterns into Shared Momentum for Youth Collaboration

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) remains highly stigmatized in many cultural contexts, particularly in China, where ADHD-related behaviors are often moralized rather than understood as neurodevelopmental differences. As a result, challenges of self-perception, social misunderstanding, and collaboration between ADHD and non-ADHD individuals remain largely unaddressed. We present Misty Forest, a VR-based collaborative game that explores ADHD through asymmetric co-play. The system translates empirically grounded ADHD behavioral patterns -- such as fluctuating attention and time blindness -- into complementary roles that require mutual coordination between players. Rather than compensating for deficits, the design treats cognitive differences as a source of interdependence. In a controlled study with mixed ADHD--non-ADHD dyads, Misty Forest led to higher task completion, increased self-acceptance among ADHD participants, improved ADHD knowledge, and greater empathy among non-ADHD players. These findings suggest that neurodiversity-centered interactive design can foster understanding, reciprocity, and inclusive collaboration.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2025

Can Intelligent User Interfaces Engage in Philosophical Discussions? A Longitudinal Study of Philosophers' Evolving Perceptions

This study investigates the evolving attitudes of philosophy scholars towards the participation of generative AI based Intelligent User Interfaces (IUIs) in philosophical discourse. We conducted a three year (2023--2025) mixed methods longitudinal study with 16 philosophy scholars and students. Qualitative data from annual interviews reveal a three stage evolution in attitude: from initial resistance and unfamiliarity, to instrumental acceptance of the IUI as a tool, and finally to a deep principled questioning of the IUI's fundamental capacity for genuine philosophical thought. Quantitative data from blind assessments, where participants rated anonymized philosophical answers from both humans and an IUI, complement these findings. While participants acknowledged the IUI's proficiency in tasks requiring formal logic and knowledge reproduction, they consistently identified significant shortcomings in areas demanding dialectical reasoning, originality and embodied understanding. The study concludes that participants do not see the IUI as a peer but rather as a sophisticated mirror whose capabilities and limitations provoke a deeper reflection on the unique and irreplaceable human dimensions of philosophical inquiry, such as intuition, value laden commitment and the courage to question fundamental premises.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2025

Final Happiness: What Intelligent User Interfaces Can Do for The Lonely Dying

This study explores the design of Intelligent User Interfaces (IUIs) to address the profound existential loneliness of terminally ill individuals. While Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) has made inroads in "Thanatechnology," current research often focuses on practical aspects like digital legacy management, overlooking the subjective, existential needs of those facing death in isolation. To address this gap, we conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with 14 lonely, terminally ill individuals. Our core contributions are: (1) An empirically-grounded model articulating the complex psychological, practical, social, and spiritual needs of this group; (2) The "Three Pillars, Twelve Principles" framework for designing IUIs as "Existential Companions"; and (3) A critical design directive derived from user evaluations: technology in this context should aim for transcendence over simulation. The findings suggest that IUIs should create experiences that augment or surpass human capabilities, rather than attempting to simulate basic human connections, which can paradoxically deepen loneliness. This research provides a clear, user-centered path for designing technology that serves not as a "tool for dying," but as a "partner for living fully until the end".

cs.HC↗

arXiv2025

A Longitudinal Study on the Attitudes of Gay Men in Beijing Towards Gay Social Media Platforms: Lonely Souls in the Digital Concrete Jungle

Over the past decade, specialized social networking applications have become a cornerstone of life for many gay men in China. This paper employs a longitudinal mixed-methods approach to investigate how Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM) have shifted their attitudes toward these platforms between approximately 2013 and 2023. Drawing on archival analysis of online discourses, a quantitative survey of 412 participants, and in-depth semi-structured interviews with 32 participants, we trace the complex trajectory of this evolution. Our findings reveal a clear pattern: from the initial embrace of these applications as revolutionary tools for community building and identity affirmation (2014--2017), to a period of growing ambivalence and critique centered on commercialization, ``hookup culture,'' and multiple forms of discrimination (2017--2020), and finally to the present era (2020--2023), characterized by pragmatic, fragmented, yet simultaneously critical and reconstructive uses. Today, users strategically employ a repertoire of applications -- including global platforms (e.g., Grindr and Tinder), domestic mainstream platforms (e.g., Blued), and niche alternatives (e.g., Aloha) -- to fulfill differentiated needs. We develop a detailed temporal framework to capture this attitudinal evolution and discuss its design implications for creating more supportive, secure, and community-oriented digital environments for marginalized groups.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2025

Between Knowledge and Care: Evaluating Generative AI-Based IUI in Type 2 Diabetes Management Through Patient and Physician Perspectives

Generative AI systems are increasingly used by patients seeking everyday health guidance, yet their appropriateness in chronic care contexts remains unclear. Focusing on Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM), this paper presents a mixed-methods investigation into how AI-generated health information is interpreted by patients and evaluated by physicians in China. Drawing on formative patient grounding and a dimension-based physician evaluation, we examine AI responses along five quality dimensions: Accuracy, Safety, Clarity, Integrity, and Action Orientation. Our findings reveal that while current systems perform well in factual explanation and general lifestyle guidance, they frequently break down in safety signaling, contextual judgment, and responsibility boundaries, particularly when fluent responses invite overtrust. By treating quality dimensions as an interpretive lens rather than a fixed framework, this work highlights the need for intelligent user interfaces that actively mediate AI outputs in chronic disease management, supporting calibrated trust and responsible boundary-setting in long-term care.

cs.HC↗