Paper Type
ERF
Abstract
Phubbing is often treated as a deliberate lapse in self-control, yet it frequently reflects automatic, habit-driven smartphone checking cued by highly optimized interfaces. Grounded in dual-process theory and digital nudging, this design science research proposes an IT artifact that mitigates phubbing by redesigning choice architecture rather than relying on depleted willpower or coercive phone bans that can trigger reactance and anxiety. The artifact combines design friction (micro-boundaries that interrupt automatic checking and prompt deliberation) with positive social scaffolding (a shared visualization that frames sustained co-present attention as a group accomplishment). We outline the theoretical rationale, artifact design, and a mixed-method evaluation using behavioral telemetry and post-session self-reports in naturalistic student gatherings. The study aims to produce deployable design principles for attention-preserving choice architectures in co-present social settings.
Paper Number
1505
Recommended Citation
Ko, Ing-Wun; Pan, Jen-Syuan; Wu, Pei-Ni; Chen, Hou-Ming; Cheng, Po-Chien; and Chou, Chih-Yuan, "Choice Architecture for Co-Presence: A Design Science Research on Phubbing" (2026). AMCIS 2026 Proceedings. 11.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2026/sig_hci/sig_hci/11
Choice Architecture for Co-Presence: A Design Science Research on Phubbing
Phubbing is often treated as a deliberate lapse in self-control, yet it frequently reflects automatic, habit-driven smartphone checking cued by highly optimized interfaces. Grounded in dual-process theory and digital nudging, this design science research proposes an IT artifact that mitigates phubbing by redesigning choice architecture rather than relying on depleted willpower or coercive phone bans that can trigger reactance and anxiety. The artifact combines design friction (micro-boundaries that interrupt automatic checking and prompt deliberation) with positive social scaffolding (a shared visualization that frames sustained co-present attention as a group accomplishment). We outline the theoretical rationale, artifact design, and a mixed-method evaluation using behavioral telemetry and post-session self-reports in naturalistic student gatherings. The study aims to produce deployable design principles for attention-preserving choice architectures in co-present social settings.
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