Positive Emodiversity in Everyday Human-Technology Interactions and Users’ Subjective Well-Being

Abstract

This paper investigates the effects of experiencing diverse positive emotions in technology use on users’ well-being, referred to as positive emodiversity. We examined technology’s role in facilitating positive emodiversity and well-being through a questionnaire study (N = 116; 580 example cases), in which three sources of emotions were considered: technology as an object, instrument, or enabler. Further, we evaluated how technology-supported hedonic and eudaimonic pursuits are associated with well-being. A regression analysis showed that increased positive emodiversity leads to increased well-being (p<.001). The effect was predicted by the three sources and both hedonic and eudaimonic pursuits. When engaged in positive activities enabled by technology, users experienced more diverse positive emotions, increasing their well-being. The study offers new understandings of the relationships between technologies, emodiversity, and well-being, and provides evidence that designing for a wide diversity of positive emotions, as opposed to generalized pleasure-displeasure distinction, can enrich users’ experiences, enhancing their well-being.

Acknowledgement

We extend our gratitude to the anonymous peer reviewers for their helpful comments on an earlier version of the paper. Claire Choi, Ava DeBartolomeis, Annabelle Devy, and Yun Mi Koh are acknowledged for their contribution to analyzing the data. We thank Yun Mi Koh for her valuable suggestions on earlier version of the survey materials.

Author contributions

JY and CJ designed the project and conducted the study. JY and CJ analyzed the data. JY wrote the original draft of the manuscript. JY and CJ revised the manuscript. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by the National Science of Foundation (IIS- 2143552) and the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea, the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF-2020S1A5A2A03045893).

Notes on contributors

JungKyoon Yoon

JungKyoon Yoon is Assistant Professor of the Department of Human Centered Design at Cornell University. His research focuses on experience design with an emphasis on affective experiences, subjective well-being, and design-mediated behavior change.

Chajoong Kim

Chajoong Kim is Associate Professor of the Department of Design and the founder of Emotion Lab at UNIST. His main research interests range from user experience design, design for well-being to sustainable design and design for behavioral change in the human-product interaction.