Abstract

The global pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness in America. Quarantine during COVID-19 restricts in-person social activities that make managing long-distance relationships challenging. People feel uncomfortable and less confident to maintain healthy relationships in a virtual world. My thesis explores interaction methods to encourage people to stay in touch in long-distance relationships through establishing and maintaining communication contracts. To solve the problem, I designed Stay In Touch - a mobile APP and a watch to provide users a quick and interesting way to monitor and manage long-distance relationships. The APP helps people manage connections and take quick reach-out actions. The watch is an auxiliary device that allows users to receive and reply to whispers to initiate connections with important others. Stay In Touch aims to reconnect friends and family at a long distance in the context of the pandemic.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Long-distance relationships--Interactive multimedia--Design; Social media--Design; Mobile apps--Development

Publication Date

11-22-2021

Document Type

Thesis

Student Type

Graduate

Degree Name

Visual Communication Design (MFA)

Department, Program, or Center

School of Design (CAD)

Advisor

Adam Smith

Advisor/Committee Member

Mike Strobert

Campus

RIT – Main Campus

Plan Codes

VISCOM-MFA

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