PhD Students

Design methods for educational technologies. Collaborative learning and teaching. Educational authorware. Social context of education technology.

Online communities. Specifically, how individuals on the autism spectrum use social sites, newcomer socialization, pro-social behavior, computational linguistics, natural language processing (NLP), computer-mediated communication (CMC), social psychology, computer-supported cooperative work (CSCW), Wikipedia, Facebook, Twitter, Slashdot, Flickr, blogs, and health support groups

Usable Privacy & Security, Machine Learning Models of People, Intelligent/Fluid Interfaces

I am interested in studying how social and ubiquitous technologies can be used to motivate and to encourage positive behaviors. My past research includes: using conservation psychology and emotional attachment to encourage environmentally sustainable behaviors; studying the use of a wearable sensor to semi-automatically sense a person’s transportation behavior and sending rewarding icons to the background of a user’s mobile phone for positive transportation behaviors; and studying the effects of tailoring websites to motivate sustainability. Currently, I am researching landlord/tenant relationships in low-income communities and understanding ways in which social computing and ubiquitous technology can be used to empower tenants. I am also evaluating electricity-monitoring devices for the home as potential feedback for electricity consumption.

Human-agent interaction. Collaborative play / learning. Educational games. Rapport.

Input devices, interaction techniques, sensors, inexact and inattentive interaction.

Speech Technology, Educational Games, Mobile Learning

Lifelogging, embedded assessement, health informatics, eldercare

Ubiquitous computing, context-aware computing, intelligibility, explanations

computer science education, intelligent tutoring systems, automated assessment

Jason does research in the area of ubiquitous computing, and takes a strong interdisciplinary approach in his work. He is interested in how we can integrate technology into our everyday lives in ways that enhance and encourage social interaction, and in how we can automate identification and delivery of relevant content to people in the right place, and at the right time.