Good Days, Bad Days: Understanding the Trajectories of Technology Use During Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

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Abstract

People with chronic illness often fluctuate between “good days” and “bad days” where symptoms are more or less severe depending on a range of factors and triggers. Our research contributes preliminary empirical knowledge on technology use during chronic illness depending on fluctuations in symptoms over time. We conducted a scoping study with people with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) to understand how their illness shapes how they use technologies in their everyday lives. This research contributes a timely HCI lens on the under-researched illness of ME/CFS, proposes the “trajectories of technology use” model that can be used to articulate how technologies are used during chronic illness, and points to design openings for technologies that are more accessible for people who experience chronic fatigue, sensory sensitivities and cognitive limitations. These design openings include non-screen-based technologies, and designing technologies that acknowledge and adapt to the changing body during fluctuations in symptoms.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationCHI 2024 - Proceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Sytems
Number of pages10
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery, Inc.
Publication date2024
Article number128
ISBN (Electronic)9798400703300
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024
Event2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Sytems, CHI 2024 - Hybrid, Honolulu, United States
Duration: 11 May 202416 May 2024

Conference

Conference2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Sytems, CHI 2024
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityHybrid, Honolulu
Period11/05/202416/05/2024
SponsorACM SIGCHI

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Copyright held by the owner/author(s)

Keywords

  • Accessibility
  • Body in HCI
  • Chronic fatigue
  • Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
  • Design
  • Dynamic Disability
  • Episodic Illness
  • ME/CFS
  • Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

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