Adolescents and young adults are increasingly consuming substances at amount and frequencies that have serious consequences to mental health and physical wellbeing. We know that treatment and prevention of further substance misuse during young adulthood can have a significant impact on reducing its burden, but it is hindered heavily by various barriers such as social stigma, fear, and mistrust. My goal was to explore how we can leverage a novel, privacy-sensitive, popular technology (i.e.,the smartwatch) to understand and provide interventions for substance use in young adults. In doing so, I hope to help further the practical application of deploying technologies that responsibly and creatively understand and (potentially) help young adults safely and healthily transition into adulthood.

This project is my dissertation research and was conducted in 3 phases, each designed to answer specific research questions:

1. Design and usability of a smartwatch-based data collection tool for substance use. I designed and developed a smartwatch application in collaboration with biobehavioral health researchers, and conducted a feasibility study to understand users’ experience with such an app. See papers detailing the design process and results from a 14-day in-the-wild feasibility study in the ‘Publications’ section on this page!

2. Understanding device preferences for capturing substance use data among young adults. I conducted a pilot comparative study among smartphones and smartwatches, to determine which device results in better compliance, better engagement, and lower perceived burden within the context of substance use data collection and interventions. This phase is wrapped up and the papers detailing the findings are in preparation — stay tuned!

3. Exploring users’ needs and preferences for sensor-based interventions that target substance use in young adults. There has been a growing body of work in the ubiquitous computing community that demonstrates the use of various sensors to predict substance use. However, there is little to no research on how participants would perceive the use of such technology, what features would be most useful for them, and the kinds of privacy and data sharing concerns that arise due to this technology. Thus, I conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews to center young adults’ lived experiences and preferences for technology that may be a part of health interventions efforts in the future. The paper detailing findings from this study is in prep - stay tuned!

My dissertation encapsulates all three components, and you can find a link to it under ‘Publications’.