Controlling Chair: Experiencing User Autonomy versus Automation through an Interactive Artifact

Abstract

With increasingly more present and complex applications of automation, its relationship to the user has become a subject of more study and discussion. Although there are many benefits of automation, there are also several challenges in designing automation that successfully fulfills its tasks and is well accepted among users. Although the tension between technology automation and user autonomy is highly discussed in professional circles, it is rarely presented in an understandable way to laypeople. To convey this topic, we created an experience that allows people to feel the difference between automation and user autonomy firsthand. Current research promotes finding a balance between automation and autonomy, and we used these keywords to guide the experience with our artifact. People and the system were both required to find balance in between their interactions, as well as literally in the tilt of the sitting position on the interactive Controlling Chair. During a one-day exhibition, we assessed the experience with people who interacted with the chair and observed how it helped them better understand the topic and reflect on its relevance to their own lives.