CRII: HCC: Understanding the Impact of Spirituality on Technological Imagination and Design

Villanova University, Villanova PA

Investigators

Abstract

This project weaves together two threads of ongoing computing research to advance an understanding of how technology can help people connect their religious or spiritual values with sustainable lifestyle choices. Despite the fact that millions of Americans (and billions worldwide) identify as religious, there is little research on how religious or spiritual values impact computing use. The second research thread is sustainable human-computer interaction which explores how computing technology can be used to promote sustainability and prioritize the health of the planet. The first phase of the project will create actionable steps for embedding religious or spiritual values into computing tools to promote sustainable habit-building. The second phase will produce concrete, open-source tools for use by religious congregations, allowing them to take action towards maintaining a healthy planet and flourishing communities. The project will produce insights that can be explored in multiple religious or spiritual contexts. The first phase of the project draws on participatory and speculative design to understand how people’s religious or spiritual value systems impact the way they envision technology for promoting sustainable lifestyles. Participatory design activities will be conducted with members of community congregations and organizations, and will be tailored to fit within their particular religious or spiritual frame. Drawing on insights from the participatory and speculative design activities, in the second phase a low-code, modular platform for building spiritually-based applications for sustainable habit formation will be created and evaluated in a longitudinal study. This project contrasts a rational and secular vision of how sustainability choices are made with one that integrates religious or spiritual beliefs in community contexts. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.