Skip to main content
Springer Nature Link
Log in

Combining Computer-Based Activity Tracking with Human Energy and Sentiment Self-assessment for Continuous Work-Life Reflection

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Human-Computer Interaction (HCII 2023)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNCS,volume 14012))

Included in the following conference series:

  • 1124 Accesses

Abstract

The modern working world offers much flexibility and freedom, but also suffers from work intensification, constant time pressure and an increase of mental illnesses and burnout. Moreover, “healthy” working habits that ensure long-term productivity and well-being increasingly can no longer be prescribed by managers in a top-down fashion, since they highly depend on the individual. Therefore, there is a need for continuous work-related self-reflection on an individual basis in order to retain a high level of human energy, productivity and well-being during work. Current tools that support this predominantly focus on either time and task management, fitness-tracking, or mental health. An integrated approach is largely missing so far. Therefore, we design and implement a prototypical application that addresses this intersection of automatic computer activity tracking and daily IT-supported self-assessment of important well-being related variables. Among the variables tracked are sleep quality (morning assessment), human energy and sentiment (fluctuations throughout the day) as well as five user-configurable variables (evening assessment) with a preset on progress, autonomy, strength use, social contacts, and stress. In the work at hand, we first derive requirements for such a tool and then present its implementation resulting in our Desktop Work-Life Tracker (DWLT) system. We moreover describe which questions can be answered by such a tool and present a preliminary evaluation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Parent-Thirion, A., et al.: 6th European Working Conditions Survey: Overview report, 2017th edn. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  2. James, S.L., et al.: Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 354 diseases and injuries for 195 countries and territories, 1990–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017. Lancet 392(10159), 1789–1858 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)32279-7

  3. Eurofound, W.: Conditions and Sustainable Work: An Analysis Using the Job Quality Framework. Publications Office of the European Union, Dublin (2021)

    Google Scholar 

  4. Green, F.: It’s Been a hard day’s night: the concentration and intensification of work in late twentieth-century Britain. British J. Industr. Relations 39(1), 53–80 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8543.00189

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Barber, L.K., Jenkins, J.S.: Creating technological boundaries to protect bedtime: examining work-home boundary management, psychological de-tachment and sleep. Stress. Health 30(3), 259–264 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.2536

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Green, F., McIntosh, S.: The intensification of work in Europe. Labour Econ. 8(2), 291–308 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1016/S0927-5371(01)00027-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Hsee, C.K., Hastie, R.: Decision and experience: why don’t we choose what makes us happy? Trends Cogn. Sci. 10(1), 31–37 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2005.11.007

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Dewey, J.: How we think: a restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process. Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath (1933)

    Google Scholar 

  9. Baumer, E.P., Khovanskaya, V., Matthews, M., Reynolds, L., Schwanda Sosik, V., Gay, G.: Reviewing reflection: on the use of reflection in interactive system design. In: Proceedings of the 2014 conference on Designing Interactive Systems, Vancouver BC Canada, pp. 93–102 (2014)

    Google Scholar 

  10. Burkert, S., Sniehotta, F.: Selbstregulation des Gesundheitsverhaltens. In: Handbuch der Gesundheitspsychologie und Medizinischen Psychologie, pp. 98–106

    Google Scholar 

  11. Manz, C.C., Sims, H.P.: Self-management as a substitute for leadership: a social learning theory perspective. AMR 5(3), 361–367 (1980). https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1980.4288845

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Choe, E.K., Lee, B., Zhu, H., Riche, N.H., Baur, D.: Understanding self-reflection: how people reflect on personal data through visual data exploration. In: Proceedings of the 11th EAI International Conference on Pervasive Computing Technologies for Healthcare: PervasiveHealth 2017 : 23–26 May 2017, Barcelona, Spain, Barcelona, Spain, pp. 173–182 (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  13. Rapp, A., Cena, F.: Self-monitoring and Technology: Challenges and Open Issues in Personal Informatics. In: Stephanidis, C., Antona, M. (eds.) Universal Access in Human-Computer Interaction. Design for All and Accessibility Practice. UAHCI 2014. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 8516, pp. 613–622 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-07509-9_58

  14. Fallon, M., Spohrer, K., Heinzl, A.: Wearable devices: a physiological and self-regulatory intervention for increasing attention in the workplace. In: Davis, F., Riedl, R., vom Brocke, J., Léger, P.M., Randolph, A. (eds.) Information Systems and Neuroscience. Lecture Notes in Information Systems and Organisation, vol. 29, pp. 229–238. Springer, Cham (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01087-4_28

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  15. Pammer, V., Bratic, M.: Surprise, surprise: activity log based time analytics for time management. In: CHI 2013 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 211–216. France, Paris (2013)

    Google Scholar 

  16. Abdel Hadi, S., Mojzisch, A., Krumm, S., Häusser, J.A.: Day-level relation-ships between work, physical activity, and well-being: Testing the physical activity-mediated demand-control (pamDC) model. Work Stress, pp. 1–22, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1080/02678373.2021.2002971

  17. Quantified Self, Homepage - Quantified Self. https://quantifiedself.com/. Accessed 30 Dec 2021

  18. Swan, M.: The quantified self: fundamental disruption in big data science and biological discovery. Big data 1(2), 85–99 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1089/big.2012.0002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Ragsdale, J.M., Beehr, T.A.: A rigorous test of a model of employees’ re-source recovery mechanisms during a weekend. J. Organ Behav. 37(6), 911–932 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2086

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Zijlstra, F.R.H., Cropley, M., Rydstedt, L.W.: From recovery to regulation: an attempt to reconceptualize ‘recovery from work.’ Stress Health J. Int. Soc. Investig. Stress 30(3), 244–252 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.2604

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Sonnentag, S., Venz, L., Casper, A.: Advances in recovery research: What have we learned? What should be done next? J. Occup. Health Psychol. 22(3), 365–380 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1037/ocp0000079

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Quinn, R.W., Spreitzer, G.M., Lam, C.F.: Building a sustainable model of human energy in organizations: exploring the critical role of resources. Acad. Manag. Ann. 6(1), 337–396 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1080/19416520.2012.676762

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Fritz, C., Lam, C.F., Spreitzer, G.M.: It’s the little things that matter: an examination of knowledge workers’ energy management. AMP 25(3), 28–39 (2011). https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.25.3.zol28

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Zacher, H., Brailsford, H.A., Parker, S.L.: Micro-breaks matter: a diary study on the effects of energy management strategies on occupational well-being. J. Vocat. Behav. 85(3), 287–297 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2014.08.005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Lambusch, F., Weigelt, O., Fellmann, M., Siestrup, K.: Application of a pictorial scale of human energy in ecological momentary assessment research. In: Harris, D., Li, WC. (eds.) Engineering Psychology and Cognitive Ergonomics. Mental Workload, Human Physiology, and Human Energy. HCII 2020. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 12186, Springer, Cham (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-49044-7_16

  26. Meyer, A.N., Murphy, G.C., Zimmermann, T., Fritz, T.: Design recommen-dations for self-monitoring in the workplace. Proc. ACM Hum. Comput. Interact. 1(CSCW), 1–24 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1145/3134714

  27. Bruch, H., Vogel, B.: Strategies for creating and sustaining organizational energy. Employ. Relat. Today 38(2), 51–61 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Russell, J.A.: A circumplex model of affect. J. Personality Soc. Psychol. 39(6), 1161–1178 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1037/h0077714

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Kirkpatrick, D. L., Craig, R.L.: Evaluation of training: Evaluation of short-term training in rehabilitation. In: Training and Development Handbook, 2nd ed. (1967)

    Google Scholar 

  30. Welbourne, T.M.: Two numbers for growth, innovation and high performance: working and optimal employee energy. Organ. Dyn. 43(3), 180–188 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.orgdyn.2014.08.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Ryan, R.M., Frederick, C.: On energy, personality, and health: subjective vitality as a dynamic reflection of well-being. J. Pers. 65(3), 529–565 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1997.tb00326.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Grobe, T.G., Frerk, T.: BARMER Gesundheitsreport 2020. Barmer, Berlin (2020)

    Google Scholar 

  33. Schippers, M.C., Hogenes, R.: Energy management of people in organizations: a review and research agenda. J. Bus. Psychol. 26(2), 193–203 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-011-9217-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Li, J., Vogel, D.: Digital health education for self-management: a systematic literature review. PACIS 2021 Proceedings, 2021. https://aisel.aisnet.org/pacis2021/164

  35. Spreitzer, G.M., Grant, T.: Helping Students Manage Their Energy. J. Manag. Educ. 36(2), 239–263 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1177/1052562911429431

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Lambusch, F., Richter, H., Fellmann, M., Weigelt, O., Kiechle, A.-K.: Human energy diary studies with personalized feedback: a proof of concept with formr. In: Proceedings of the 15th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies (BIOSTEC 2022), Vienna, Austria, pp. 789–800 (2022)

    Google Scholar 

  37. Kim, S., Park, Y., Headrick, L.: Daily micro-breaks and job performance: general work engagement as a cross-level moderator. J. Appl. Psychol. 103(7), 772–786 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000308

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Litwiller, B., Snyder, L.A., Taylor, W.D., Steele, L.M.: The relationship between sleep and work: a meta-analysis. J. Appl. Psychol. 102(4), 682–699 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000169

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Sabia, S., et al.: Association of sleep duration in middle and old age with inci-dence of dementia. Nat. Commun. 12(1), 2289 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-22354-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Komaroff, A.L.: Are toxins flushed out of the brain during sleep?

    Google Scholar 

  41. Reddy, O.C., van der Werf, Y.D.: The Sleeping Brain: Harnessing the Power of the Glymphatic System through Lifestyle Choices. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci. Accessed 7 Feb 2023

  42. Schwartz, T., McCarthy, C.: Manage your energy, not your time. Harvard Business Review, vol. 85, no. 10, p. 63 (2007). https://hbr.org/2007/10/manage-your-energy-not-your-time

  43. Spector, P.E., Goh, A.: The role of emotions in the occupational stress process. In: Perrewé, P.L., Ganster, D.C. (eds.) Research in Occupational Stress and Well Being, vol. 1, Exploring theoretical mechanisms and perspectives.  Oxford, Amsterdam: Elsevier Science; JAI, pp. 195–232 (2002)

    Google Scholar 

  44. Cho, J., Xu, T., Zimmermann-Niefield, A., Voida, S.: Reflection in theory and reflection in practice: an exploration of the gaps in reflection support among personal informatics apps. In: CHI2022: Proceedings of the 2022 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems : April 30-May 5, 2022, New Orleans, LA, USA, New Orleans LA USA, pp. 1–23 (2022)

    Google Scholar 

  45. Li, I., Dey, A.K., Forlizzi, J.: Understanding my data, myself. In: Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Ubiquitous Computing, Beijing, China, p. 405 (2011)

    Google Scholar 

  46. Yfantidou, S., Sermpezis, P., Vakali, A.: 12 Years of self-tracking for promoting physical activity from a user diversity perspective: taking stock & thinking ahead. In: Adjunct Proceedings of the 30th ACM Conference on User Modeling, Adaptation and Personalization, Barcelona Spain, pp. 211–221 (2022)

    Google Scholar 

  47. Busch, M., Schrammel, J., Tscheligi, M.: Personalized persuasive technology – development and validation of scales for measuring persuadability. In: Berkovsky, S., Freyne, J. (eds) Persuasive Technology. PERSUASIVE 2013. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol.  7822, pp. 33–38. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-37157-8_6

  48. Volk, S., Lowe, K.B., Barnes, C.M.: Circadian leadership: a review and integration of chronobiology and leadership. J. Organ Behav. (2022). https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2659

    Article  Google Scholar 

  49. Hanna, A., Remington, R.: The representation of color and form in long-term memory. Mem. Cognit. 24(3), 322–330 (1996). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03213296

    Article  Google Scholar 

  50. Madden, T.J., Hewett, K., Roth, M.S.: Managing images in different cultures: a cross-national study of color meanings and preferences. J. Int. Marketing 8(4), 90–107 (2000). http://www.jstor.org/stable/25048831

  51. Weigelt, O., et al.: Time to recharge batteries – development and validation of a pictorial scale of human energy. Eur. J. Work Organiz. Psychol. 31(5), 1–18 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2022.2050218

  52. Österle, H., et al.: Memorandum zur gestaltungsorientierten Wirtschaftsinformatik. Schmalenbachs Z betriebswirtsch Forsch 62(6), 664–672 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03372838

    Article  Google Scholar 

  53. Fellmann, M., Lambusch, F., Pieper, L.: Towards combining automatic measurements with self-assessments for personal stress. In: 2019 IEEE 21st Conference on Business Informatics (CBI), July 15- 17, p. 8(00076). Moscow, Russia. IEEE (2019). https://doi.org/10.1109/CBI.2019.00076

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Rostock, Business Information Systems, Rostock, Germany

    Michael Fellmann, Fabienne Lambusch & Angelina Clara Schmidt

Authors
  1. Michael Fellmann
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Fabienne Lambusch
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Angelina Clara Schmidt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Fabienne Lambusch or Angelina Clara Schmidt .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The Open University of Japan, Chiba, Japan

    Masaaki Kurosu

  2. Hosei University, Tokyo, Japan

    Ayako Hashizume

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this paper

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this paper

Fellmann, M., Lambusch, F., Schmidt, A.C. (2023). Combining Computer-Based Activity Tracking with Human Energy and Sentiment Self-assessment for Continuous Work-Life Reflection. In: Kurosu, M., Hashizume, A. (eds) Human-Computer Interaction. HCII 2023. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 14012. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-35599-8_11

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-35599-8_11

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-35598-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-35599-8

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics