8. Animals & Nature
発表担当
目次
説明
Human well-being is inseparable from environmental context, with nature long recognized for its restorative potential. As everyday life becomes increasingly mediated by technology, access to nature is reconfigured through digital media. Virtual nature is often proposed as a tool for supporting well-being, yet the assumptions guiding its design and evaluation remain under-examined. This paper presents a systematic review of 124 empirical studies on virtual nature and well-being. Results generally trend toward clear positive effects on well-being; however, the current state-of-the-art remains considerably limited. Research is dominated by short-term, passive interventions grounded in stress reduction and attention restoration theories, prioritizing affective and physiological outcomes over cognitive or relational dimensions. We conclude by outlining four design inspirations that reposition virtual nature within HCI, shifting attention from short-term relief toward more diverse forms of human–nature interaction including cultural, participatory, and more-than-human perspectives.
日本語まとめ
説明
Cognitively stimulating experiences are fundamental to supporting the welfare of zoo-housed animals. Puzzle-feeders are often initially engaging, but require frequent human intervention and often lack adaptability to support animals’ sustained cognitive engagement. We developed a modular adaptive puzzle-feeder designed to support user agency, independence, and multisensory feedback. The system was deployed over four weeks with an Arctic fox (\textit{Vulpes lagopus}) across progressive difficulty levels and piloted with two coatis (\textit{Nasua narica}). Combining HCI and animal science methodologies, we assessed (1) multisensory engagement, (2) changes in behavioral diversity and habitat utilization, (3) adaptation to puzzle complexity, and (4) impact on human stakeholders. Results show strong sustained engagement (46.5\% time-budget), increased behavioral diversity, habitat exploration, strategic problem-solving, and positive keeper and visitor reactions. This work highlights how technology can support animal welfare and visitor experience, and how mixed HCI and ethological methods enable holistic evaluation of enrichment and animal usership.
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Pet loss is a distressing experience often underappreciated by societal norms, leading to disenfranchised grief. We investigate how bereaved pet owners engage in online support groups, focusing on their motivations, interactions, and challenges. Through in-depth interviews with 18 participants, we identified key motivations for joining, including grief expression and validation, emotional and informational support, anonymity and accessibility. Engagement in these groups facilitated emotional expression, grief validation, memorialization practices, and the development of coping mechanisms, while also fostering shared rituals and collective identity. However, challenges like compulsory grief—where grievers feel pressured to remain in a constant state of mourning—and insufficient support for dynamic coping persisted. Drawing on the dual process model of bereavement, we propose the metaphor of oscillation design, balancing loss-oriented and restoration-oriented coping. Our findings show that current platforms overemphasize loss, underscoring the need for design interventions that rebalance asymmetric oscillation and enable more dynamic coping trajectories.
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説明
Human–animal interaction in virtual reality has been explored for stress relief, yet balancing practical ease of use with natural haptic experience for relaxation remains a key challenge. We investigated whether mid-air ultrasound haptics, rendering breathing and fur stroking cues without wearable haptic devices, could enhance relaxation with a virtual cat. We first conducted a perceptual study to design a tactile cue for a cat’s breathing. By synchronizing expansion–contraction of the ultrasound focal region with intensity modulation, we demonstrated the realism and expressivity of the breathing cue. Next, we conducted an application study in which participants engaged in a short relaxation session with a virtual cat. Physiological and subjective measures showed that ultrasound haptics enhanced relaxation compared to both non-haptic interaction and controller-based vibrotactile feedback. These findings suggest that ultrasound haptics can extend VR-based human–animal interaction by combining accessibility with psychological benefits, opening new opportunities for well-being and therapeutic applications.
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説明
While zoos deploy technologies for animals' enrichment and visitors' education, little research has investigated how technology can support joint computer use by animals and people working together. To bridge this gap, we developed CreatureConnect, a distributed device with which lemurs and zoo visitors alike can control the intensity of sounds, smells, and visuals on either side of the enclosure boundary. Over 20 days of subsequent observation, we recorded 541 lemur-system interactions, observed 16,139 zoo visitors, and collected 696 sets of questionnaire responses to examine the effects of distributing control on both species across baseline, visitor-control-only, lemur-control-only, shared-control, and no-control conditions. While lemurs used CreatureConnect significantly less when controlling it alone, humans exhibited significantly greater engagement, education, empathy, and overall-experience value under shared-control conditions, which outperformed all other conditions. In light of the results and the fundamental role of interaction and interfaces in animal--computer and human--computer interaction, the paper examines its vital implications for between-species collaboration and control.
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Urban development reduces green space, disrupts wildlife, and increases noise, diminishing everyday exposure to natural soundscapes and weakening people’s connection to nearby nature. We explore restoring urban natural soundscapes with personal Audio AR to help people reacquaint with everyday nature, and observe associations with perceived nature connectedness, eco-awareness (noticing both existing and missing greenery), and reflection. We present GreenAR, a ubiquitous location-aware system that composes spatial, visually-congruent biophony (birds, insects) from OpenStreetMap greenery around the listener. We conducted three in-situ studies: (1) an error-resilient sound placement evaluation under urban GPS conditions (n=16); (2) a campus study comparing with/without restoration (day/night) (n=16); and (3) a week-long field deployment in five countries (n=12). Participants reported higher nature connectedness with restoration, heightened awareness of vegetation and urban wildlife, attention to green deficits along routes, and occasional micro‑actions. Notably, one participant described a reversal from opposing to supporting urban greening policies, highlighting the potential of everyday ambient soundscapes to shape reflection on urban nature.
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説明
Enrichment is critical for zoo animal welfare. Commonly used food-based approaches have limitations in terms of sensory diversity, agency, redundancy, time budget, and nutrition. Building on research into agency-based technologies, choice-driven enrichment, and species relevant sensory engagement, we developed an interactive proximity activated scented bubble system for two American black bears (Ursus americanus). This project integrates behavioral intervention with HCI methodology to create animal-controlled olfactory enrichment. Over a three-week deployment, we assessed (1) enrichment potential through system use, behavioral diversity, and habitat use; (2) usership via engagement patterns with the bubbles; (3) sense-making and agency through anticipation behaviors; and (4) human stakeholder perspectives via visitor and staff surveys. Results show the intervention increased target foraging and locomotive behaviors compared to post-feeding baselines, generated rich multi-modal interactions, and received positive stakeholder feedback, illustrating how technology can promote animal agency while supporting zoo welfare and educational missions.