Experience-Driven Design of Ambiences for Future Pop Up

Workspaces

Aino Ahtinen (aino.ahtinen@tut.fi), Jenni Poutanen, Maiju Vuolle, Kaisa

Väänänen, Sanna Peltoniemi Tampere University of Technology

Terminology

• UX = user experience = ”a person’s perceptions and responses that result from the use or anticipated use of a product, system or service” (ISO standard)

• EDD = experience driven design = to design for particular experiences that are first explored

• Knowledge work = work that involves the creation, distribution or application of knowledge

• Pop Up workspaces = workspace designs that are temporary, modifiable by the user, and they support the worker’s task, targets and working mode

• Workspace ambiences = atmospheres of the workspaces that can be created by means of space design and ambient technologies

Focus of the study

• Explore the opportunities of future Pop Up workspaces – To support the challenging nature of knowledge work and

it’s different work tasks • Routine vs. creative

• Individual vs. social

• Etc.

• Design technology-mediated ambiences that can provide meaningful experiences for the workers – To design concepts of multi-use, multipurpose workspaces

to support different work tasks in order to improve workers’ job satisfaction, wellbeing and productivity

Vision

• The users (=workers) could select a suitable ambience for their current work mode and activity

• The variety of ambiences may support people in getting pleasurable experiences in the workspace and thus, increasing wellbeing and productivity

– Tailored vs. one size fits all

– Being in control vs. no possibilities to control

– Dynamic vs. static

Technology-mediated ambiences

• Ambience is defined here as: – “A multisensory atmosphere and character of space, which is

created by the means of ambient technologies, real world objects and spatial design to evoke particular user experiences”

• The technology components that can be utilized when designing multisensory ambiences include, e.g. – Screens to display visual materials (images, videos, colors,

shapes) – Lighting – Speakers for the auditory stimuli – Vibration and intelligent materials for the sense of touch – Aroma dispensers for the olfactory sense

Study methods

• The Experience-Driven Design (EDD) approach was employed to gain insights of the desired experiences in Pop Up workspaces

• We first conducted three participatory group sessions to ideate experience types for Pop Up workspaces – Co-reation of experiences with the potential future users – 14 knowledge workers from university – Expectations, insights, hands-on experiment: ”constructing” a pop up space – Result: five categories of meaningful experiences for future Pop Up

workspaces

• We then run a multidisciplinary concepting workshop in which we designed concepts for technology-mediated ambiences – 5 researchers included – UX, architectural space design, knowledge management – Result: early phase example solutions for the Pop up workspace ambiences

Findings

Five categories of experiences

• Five experience categories that we call mindsets

– Liberty

– Fellowship

– Determination

– Retreat

– Recovery

• Each mindset can be described with different kinds of working modes, tasks, practices, targets and purposes

The mindsets and experiences

Liberty

Fellowship

Determination

Retreat

Recovery

Creativity Inspiration Exploration Innovation Expression Sensation Freedom Feeling

energized Activation Variation Being part Connectedness

Encounter Being part Collaboration Closeness Connectedness Cosyness Equality

Focus Concentration Conventionality Formality Peacefulness Discreetness Being part Beauty

Independency Peacefulness Concentration Safety Selection Feeling

connected

Recreation Peace of mind Wellbeing Escape Captivation Safety Activation Nature

experience

Ambience for Liberty

• Rough, workshoplike, activating, modifiable

• Freedom to be and do • Painting the wall • Bright lights, spacious • Modify the space and furniture • Virtual window to

cosmopolitan city street views, and matching soundscape

• Smell of a refreshing breeze • Work happens actively by

standing, walking and moving, taking different viewpoints

• There can even be a rotating floor and dynamic walls

Ambience for Retreat

• Surrounded by intelligent glass walls, whose transparency can be adjusted (for privacy, availability and distant to others)

• Permission to be offline • Safety • Cosy and peaceful ”nest” • Lightness can be adjusted • Personally meaningful

landscape or object visible on the virtual window

• Soundscape based on user preferences

Conclusions

• Ambient technologies, which can be embedded in the space, provide novel possibilities for increasing the flexibility of the space – Development of different ambiences for the future Pop Up workspaces to be

modifiable by the user – Space to support the changing work practices and preferences of the

individual

• Our vision is that in the future, the workers could be able to modify the workspace by selecting a suitable ambience according to their work task, mode and preferences

• Will potentially increase workers’ job satisfaction, wellbeing and productivity

• Our work continues by construction of ”mockups” of workspace ambiences – My personal research interest concentrates on how to make knowledge

workers physically more active during their workhours, and thus support their creativity, sociability and wellbeing

Thanks!

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https://popupknowledgework.wordpress.com/blog/