Year: 2025
Type: dissertation
Abstract: In my own experience as a rental housing resident, I often felt an invisible wall between myself and my neighbors despite our physical closeness. This led me to wonder: could technology help rebuild this missing connection? While Human-Engaged Computing advocates incorporating Eastern philosophy into design, I frankly found it challenging to translate abstract concepts like Ren (benevolence) or Li (ritual propriety) into actual, workable design features. To bridge this gap, I developed a three-stage translation mechanism. I started by extracting principles from Confucian concepts, turned them into the 'Lian' prototype, and finally tested them through qualitative interviews with five Western rental housing residents in Finland. The results were surprising. The translation mechanism successfully turned abstract philosophy into a perceptible interface. Lian's features—such as Mutual Aid and the Legacy Timeline—differ fundamentally from existing platforms by prioritizing meaningful friction over efficiency. I was prepared for cultural resistance, yet Western users perceived these qualities without prior explanation, describing the experience as "warm," "relational," and "like a garden." The cultural translation succeeded not because users adopted Asian values, but because they recognized them as "universal" and "human." My intention here is quite modest: to show, even in prototype form, that philosophical ideas don’t have to stay abstract. They can shape real design choices. This thesis extends Value Sensitive Design to non-Western traditions and reconceptualizes community technology as cultivation rather than consumption. Ultimately, the Junzi (exemplary person) framework aligns ethics with sustainability: both are fundamentally about taking responsibility—for neighbors, for community, and for future generations.
Author: Qi, Ning
Language: English
Subfield: Human-Computer Interaction
Field: Computer Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7134870617