Design Exploration of Lightweight Interactions for Awareness-Supporting Technologies in Hybrid Work

TL;DR

This paper investigates how lightweight interactions can enhance awareness-supporting technologies to improve informal communication in hybrid work environments, focusing on design exploration and framework development.

Contribution

It introduces a novel framework for integrating lightweight interactions into awareness tools, based on experiential design and analysis of prototypes and scenarios.

Findings

Identified design options for lightweight interactions.

Developed methods for integrating interactions with information displays.

Provided a framework for future awareness-supporting technology design.

Abstract

Hybrid work settings often lack the informal communication that naturally emerges from spontaneous encounters and ambient awareness of coworkers' activities, potentially hindering team collaboration. To address this challenge, we explored how lightweight interactions can be integrated into awareness-supporting technologies for fostering informal communication. Our experiential design approach focused on how information is perceived and processed rather than explicit content exchange. Through brainstorming, speculating, and prototyping, we explored the design space for small hybrid teams. By annotating and analyzing design concepts, speculative scenarios, and prototypes, we developed a framework that identified design options for lightweight interactions and methods for integrating them with information displays.