Sustainable millennials: attitudes towards sustainability and the material effects of interactive technologies

ABSTRACT

This paper describes the design and interprets the results of a survey of 435 undergraduate students concerning the attitudes of this mainly millennial population towards sustainability apropos of the material effects of information technologies. This survey follows from earlier work on notions of Sustainable Interaction Design (SID)---that is the perspective that sustainability can and should be a central focus within HCI. In so doing it advances to some degree the empirical resources needed to scaffold an understanding of the theory and principles of SID. The interpretations offered yield key insights about understanding different notions of what it means to be successful in a material sense to this population and specific design principles for creating interactive designs differently such that more sustainable behaviors are palatable to individuals of varying attitudes.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.m Miscellaneous

Additional Classification:
  J. Computer Applications
  J.7 COMPUTERS IN OTHER SYSTEMS
      Subjects: Consumer products

  K. Computing Milieux
  K.1 THE COMPUTER INDUSTRY
      Subjects: Markets
  K.4 COMPUTERS AND SOCIETY
      K.4.m Miscellaneous

General Terms:
Design

Keywords:
design, hci and design, sid, sustainability, sustainable interaction design, value sensitive design