Academic Research Projects
Here is a selection of academic research projects I led throughout my academic training.
You can find the full list of my publications on my Google Scholar page.
01
eHealth Literacy and Information Search Behaviors​
Overview
As everyday users increasingly rely on search engines for health information, not everyone has the same ability to effectively find and evaluate that information. While self-reported eHealth literacy scales exist, few studies have examined how these perceived skills actually relate to real-world search behavior and outcomes.
My dissertation addresses this gap by exploring how people’s perceived ability to search for health information aligns with their actual search behaviors, using objective methods.
Research Question
How do health consumers' perceived skills to search health information affect their actual information search behaviors and outcomes?
Methods
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Design: In-lab within-subject experiment using a pretest-posttest structure
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Techniques: Eye-tracking and retrospective think-aloud interviews
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Participants: Health consumers of varying self-reported eHealth literacy levels
Analysis
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Qualitative: Content analysis
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Quantitative:
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​Nonparametric statistic
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Beta & Poisson regression
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Generalized linear mixed model
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Mediation analysis to examine relationships among perception, behavior, and outcomes
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Impact
Findings from this study aim to enhance how to measure eHealth literacy—shifting from self-perception to observable behavior—and inform the design of health information systems that better support diverse users.
02
Consumers' Evaluation of the Quality of Online Health Information: A Mixed-Methods Study
Overview
As more people search for health advice online, it's important to understand how they judge whether the information is trustworthy—especially across different types of websites like government pages, commercial sites, and online forums. This study explored how people with different levels of eHealth literacy (their confidence in finding and understanding health information online) evaluate the credibility of content from these various sources.
Research Question
How do eHealth literacy and website source type influence how people evaluate the credibility of online health information?
Methods
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Design: In-lab within-subject experimental study
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Techniques: Eye-tracking and retrospective think-aloud interviews
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Participants: Health consumers of varying self-reported eHealth literacy levels
Analysis
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Qualitative: Content analysis
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Quantitative:
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Mixed-effects logistic regression
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Generalized linear mixed model
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Negative binomial mixed models
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Impact
Participants relied most on content cues (e.g., clarity, relevance) when judging credibility, regardless of the source. Source cues (like government domains) were more influential on official sites, while design cues mattered more on commercial site. These insights can inform the design of more credible and user-friendly health websites, especially for users with lower digital literacy.
03
Development of Wearable Real-Time Sensing Technology for Detecting Acute Heart Disease
Overview
As people age, they face increasing risks of chronic diseases like heart conditions. At the same time, advances in wearable and sensor technology offer new ways to monitor health in real time. In this study, I explored the use of smart clothing—a wearable device that passively tracks biometric data like heart rate—to support older adults and patients with chronic health conditions. Our goal was to understand how these users perceive this technology and their willingness to adopt it.
Research Question
What are older adults’ and patients’ perceptions of, and willingness to use, smart clothing that monitors health conditions?
Methods
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Survey: Assessed perceived usefulness, ease of use, and willingness to adopt smart clothing
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Scenarios: Provided an imagined real-life use cases to help participants evaluate relevance and impacts
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Interviews: Collected in-depth feedback on expectations, concerns, and acceptance
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Participants: Older adults over 60 years and patients with heart failure
Analysis
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Quantitative: Structural Equation Modeling​
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Impact
Identified key factors that influence older adults’ acceptance of health-monitoring wearables, such as perceived usefulness, comfort, and privacy concerns. Results provide guidance for designing more user-friendly, trustworthy wearable health devices, especially for older or clinically vulnerable populations.
04
Usability Testing of Smartphone Gestures Across Different Screen Sizes and Age Groups
Overview
Smartphones are now the most common touchscreen devices, used by people of all ages. With screen sizes ranging from small to large, it's important to understand how children, adults, and older adults perform touchscreen gestures on different device sizes. This study tested both standard Android gestures and newly designed gestures to evaluate how age and screen size affect usability.
Research Question
How do users from different age groups perform gestures on smartphones of varying sizes?
Methods​
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Participants: Children, adults, and older adults
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Devices: Smartphone with three screen sizes: 4, 5, and 6 inches
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Gestures tested: drag, pinch, double-touch drag
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Measures: Completion time, success rate, accuracy, Fitt's Law, usability satisfaction questionnaire
Analysis
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Quantitative: Two-way mixed-design ANOVA to examine how age group and smartphone size interact to affect gesture performance​
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Impact
The study found that gesture performance varies by age group and screen size. Complex gestures (like double-touch drag) were more challenging for older adults, especially on larger screens. Insights from this study can inform the design of more age-inclusive gesture-based interfaces, improving accessibility across devices.
05
Ergonomic Study on 3D Animation Film Design
Overview
The way 3D objects move—specifically, where they start and how fast they travel—can significantly impact how natural and comfortable a 3D video appears to viewers. In this study, I explored how different starting positions and movement speeds of 3D objects affect people's subjective visual comfort and perceived image quality when watching stereoscopic video on a large 50-inch 3D display.
Research Question
What combination of motion parameters (starting location and velocity) provides the most comfortable and high-quality 3D viewing experience?
Methods​
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Experimental design: Taguchi method
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Devices: 50-inch stereoscopic 3D screen
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Measures: Visual comfort rating, image quality score, disparity and velocity parameters of 3D object motion
Analysis
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Quantitative: ANOVA and nonparametric statistical tests were used to identify significant differences in comfort and quality ratings across motion conditions​
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Impact
Identified optimal combinations of motion speed and starting depth that enhanced both visual comfort and perceived image quality. The results provide actionable insights for 3D content creators and system designers to improve the user experience in immersive visual media
06
Fundamental Attribution Error in Conceptual and Perceptional Difficulties
Overview
This study explored how conceptual understanding and perceptual ease influence each other and contribute to fundamental attribution errors—the tendency to overemphasize personal traits and underemphasize situational factors when interpreting others’ behavior. Specifically, I tested how text readability (perception) and sentence order (conceptual clarity) affected readers’ judgments.
Research Question
How do concept and perception interact to influence fundamental attribution errors?
Methods​
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Experimental design: Two-factor between-subjects experiment
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Manipulations:
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Font readability (perceptual): easy versus hard to read
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Sentence order (conceptual): logical versus randomized
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Measure: Participants read an article and were asked to make assessment about the behavior described in the article
Analysis
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Quantitative: ANOVA was used to examine the main and interaction effects of font readability and sentence order on attribution judgments​