Cueing, Self-Cueing, and Embodied Interaction

This research examines embodied and self-cueing systems that support people living with dementia in performing daily and cognitively complex activities. Through projects such as Mixed Reality Interactions, Adaptations to Rituals and Habits, Cue-D, Self-Cueing, and CogniPrompt, we develop multimodal prompting systems that scaffold memory, task comprehension, and confidence. These studies advance theoretical and practical understandings of embodied interaction and have produced widely cited outputs, including publications in Frontiers in Psychology, IJHCS

Rehabilitation and Telewellness

This research develops tangible and XR-based rehabilitation systems to promote embodied engagement and remote wellness. Projects such tangible rehabilitation interfaces for stroke patients demonstrate how physical computing and participatory design can reframe rehabilitation as a creative and relational practice.

Relational Communication in Dementia Care

This research investigates how technologies can foster emotional attunement, communication closeness, and co-regulation among people with dementia, caregivers, and intergenerational partners. It builds on participatory design studies, which focuses on prompting and conversational systems that enhance relational communication. Forthcoming work explores how AI and multimodal interfaces can support emotional reciprocity and reduce loneliness in care settings.

Design for Cultural Relevance in Health

This research addresses equity and inclusivity in health technologies, emphasizing the importance of cultural frameworks in design. The ICDHS 2024 paper, Designing for Cultural Relevance: A Human-Centred Framework for Chronic Health Technologies in Multicultural Contexts, emerged from graduate theses on dementia rituals and diabetes management among immigrant communities. These studies inform a broader agenda on inclusive health technologies for marginalized and rural communities in Canada.

Speech and Communication Impairments

This research focuses on empathetic computing systems that support communication for people with speech impairments, neurodivergence, or illness-related communication barriers. Current work includes When People Talk, Listen Completely, a participatory project co-designed with individuals with speech impairments, and a PhD on empathetic computing in cancer care. These studies advance multimodal and conversational systems that emphasize empathy, agency, and social inclusion.

Neurodivergence and Autism

This research extends inclusive design to neurodivergent populations through participatory approaches to spatial mapping and cognitive accessibility. Current graduate research investigates how autistic individuals experience and represent spatial and sensory environments, informing design strategies that promote cognitive comfort and inclusion.

Chronic Pain Management

This research explores how design can support chronic pain management through participatory frameworks and interactive technologies. Projects include co-design collaborations with clinicians, occupational therapists, and individuals with chronic pain to develop assistive systems that combine self-tracking, visualization, and empathetic interaction models.

Global Design Studio: a multidisciplinary initiative to practice experiential education

The Global Design Studio is an international pedagogical and research collaboration that bridges teaching and research through experiential design education. Co-created with Marianella Chamorro-Koc (QUT) and Ingrid Stahl (THI), GDS enables cross-disciplinary student teams to respond to shared design briefs on health and wellbeing. The initiative has been profiled in York University’s YFile and serves as a key knowledge mobilization platform connecting student innovation, research dissemination, and community impact.