How Romantic Partners Build "Sound Relationship Houses" through Shared Gaming
Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction (CHI PLAY 2026, to appear), 10(7), 2026.
Technology and Parenting
Technology should support families, not create friction at home. The User Empowerment Lab works with children, teens, and parents to understand the burdens technology creates.
Publications
Risks and Consequences of Children's Use of Social AI
Pediatrics, 180(7):720-721, 2026.
Mobile Gambling: Unexplored Risks to Children and Families
Pediatrics, 157(3):e2025073040, 2026.
Parents' Ontological Beliefs Regarding the Use of Conversational Agents at Home: Resisting the Neoliberal Discourse
Learning, Media and Technology, 49(2):290–305, 2023.
Social Emotional Learning with Conversational Agents: Reviewing Current Designs and Probing Parents' Ideas for Future Ones
Proceedings of the ACM on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies (IMWUT), 6(2):1-23, 2022.
Parenting in a Pandemic: Juggling Multiple Roles and Managing Technology Use in Family Life During COVID-19 in the United States
Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 5(CSCW2):1-39, 2021.
Can Conversational Agents Change the Way Children Talk to People?
Proceedings of the 20th annual ACM conference on interaction design and children (IDC 2021).
When Screen Time Isn’t Screen Time: Tensions and Needs Among Tweens and Their Parents During Nature-Based Exploration
Proceedings of the 2021 ACM conference on human factors in computing systems (CHI 2021). Acceptance rate: 26%.
Parenting with Alexa: Exploring the Introduction of Smart Speakers on Family Dynamics
Proceedings of the 2020 ACM conference on human factors in computing systems (CHI 2020). Acceptance rate: 24%.
Assumptions Checked: How Families Learn About and Use the Echo Dot
Proceedings of the ACM on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies (IMWUT), 4(1):1-23, 2020.
'Everything's the Phone': Understanding the Phone’s Supercharged Role in Parent-Teen Relationships
Proceedings of the 2019 ACM conference on human factors in computing systems (CHI 2019). Acceptance rate: 23%.
Communication Breakdowns Between Families and Alexa
Proceedings of the 2019 ACM conference on human factors in computing systems (CHI 2019). Acceptance rate: 23%.
Anchored Audio Sampling: A Seamless Method for Exploring Children’s Thoughts and Reactions During Deployment Studies
Proceedings of the 2019 ACM conference on human factors in computing systems (CHI 2019). Acceptance rate: 23%.
Best paper award (top 1%)
Understanding Parents’ Perspectives on Mealtime Technology
Proceedings of the ACM on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies (IMWUT), 3(1):5, 1-19, 2019.
Lights, Music, Stamps! Evaluating Mealtime Tangibles for Preschoolers
Proceedings of the 13th annual ACM conference on tangible, embedded, and embodied interactions (TEI 2019). Acceptance rate: 34%.
Joint Media Engagement between Parents and Preschoolers in the U.S., China, and Taiwan
Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, CSCW, 2(192):1-19, 2018.
Let's Play! Digital and Analog Play Patterns between Preschoolers and Parents
Proceedings of the 2018 ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2018). Acceptance rate: 25.7%.
Coco’s Videos: An Empirical Investigation of Video-Player Design Features and Children's Media Use
Proceedings of the 2018 ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2018). Acceptance rate: 25.7%.
Best paper honorable mention (top 5%)
Plan & Play: Supporting Intentional Media Use in Early Childhood
Proceedings of the 18th Annual ACM Interaction Design and Children Conference (IDC 2017). Acceptance rate: 21%.
Best paper honorable mention (top three papers)
It wasn't really about the Pokémon: Parents' Perspectives on a Location-Based Mobile Game
Proceedings of the 2017 ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2017). Acceptance rate: 25%.
Screen Time Tantrums: How Families Manage Screen Media Experiences for Young Children
Proceedings of the 2016 ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2016). Acceptance rate: 23%.
Best paper honorable mention (top 5%)
Not at the Dinner Table: Parents' and Children's Perspectives on Family Technology Rules
Proceedings of the 19th Annual ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW 2016). Acceptance rate: 25%.
Texting While Parenting: How Adults Use Mobile Phones When Caring for Children at the Playground
Proceedings of the 2015 ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2015). Acceptance rate: 25%.
@BabySteps: Design and Evaluation of a System for Using Twitter for Tracking Children's Developmental Milestones
Proceedings of the 2014 ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2014). Acceptance rate: 23%.
Go Go Games: Therapeutic Video Games for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Proceedings of the 14th Annual ACM Interaction Design and Children Conference (IDC 2013). Acceptance rate: 33%.