At the recent NEAIS 2024 conference hosted at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), PhD student Doaa Alrefaei from our lab presented two pioneering studies that applied the role of user experience and eye-tracking in healthcare and mental health research.

The Impact of Anxiety on Reading Behavior: An Exploratory Eye-Tracking Study

In her first paper, Doaa, alongside co-authors Soussan Djamasbi, Diane Strong, Javad Norouzi Nia, and Ashwin Sukumar, explored how anxiety impacts attention during reading tasks. Using a passage about bee intelligence, they measured eye-tracking metrics, specifically saccade-to-fixation count and fixation-to-visit duration, to capture how individuals with anxiety shift their focus. Their findings revealed significant differences in attentional patterns between anxious and non-anxious individuals, suggesting that eye movements could serve as a biomarker for anxiety. This study supports the cognitive model of selective attention and demonstrates the potential of eye-tracking technology in mental health diagnostics.

UX Approach to Designing a Clinical Decision Support System for Pain

In her second paper, Doaa applied the User Experience-driven Innovation (UXDI) framework to design a Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS) aimed at assisting healthcare professionals in managing chronic pain. Collaborating with Soussan Djamasbi and Diane Strong, she conducted interviews with physicians across specialties, including oncology, pain management, and dental surgery, to understand their workflows and pain management needs. Their research highlighted the importance of an intuitive, user-friendly dashboard to improve information delivery for clinicians. This work emphasizes user-centered design in developing systems that enhance clinical decision-making in pain management.

Through these projects, Doaa's research at NEAIS 2024 exemplifies our lab’s commitment to integrating user experience and innovative technologies to address real-world challenges in healthcare and mental health.