Designing as trading-off: a practice-based view on smart service systems

Posture-related problems, such as back pain, are an increasing global burden. They are deeply intertwined with how humans sit. While the information systems (IS) literature has been relatively silent on this matter, emerging literature in related disciplines has begun to attend to this problem by developing various artefacts. However, researchers have oftentimes done so by basing their artefacts on engineering rationales and attending only limitedly to the interactions between artefacts and humans. These interactions are crucial because data on posture is best collected by placing sensors on humans’ backs. This calls for considering and evaluating how bodies move in relation to sensors, the emotive reactions of humans to sensors and how humans make sense of recommendations emanating from underlying artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. We uncover what these considerations of human-centredness mean for designing smart service systems for posture management and suggest that a core consideration relates to <i>trading-off</i> possibilities of smart technologies and necessities emerging from practices. This study contributes to the body of knowledge on designing smart service systems and responds to calls for more IS research dealing with the prevention of chronic health conditions.

与姿势相关的健康问题（如背痛）正成为日益沉重的全球健康负担，这类问题与人类的坐姿息息相关。尽管信息系统（Information Systems, IS）领域的研究文献对此议题关注度相对不足，但其他相关学科的新兴研究文献已通过开发各类人工制品（artefacts）着手应对该问题。然而，此类研究大多以工程逻辑为基础开发人工制品，仅有限地关注人工制品与人类之间的交互关系。这类交互至关重要，因为姿势数据的最优采集方案是在人体背部部署传感器。这要求研究者考量并评估以下内容：人体与传感器的相对运动状态、人类对传感器的情绪反应，以及人类如何解读源自底层人工智能（Artificial Intelligence, AI）技术的建议。本研究阐明了以人类为中心的上述考量在姿势管理智能服务系统设计中的具体内涵，并提出核心考量在于**权衡**智能技术的应用潜力与实践中衍生的现实需求。本研究丰富了智能服务系统设计领域的知识体系，并回应了学界呼吁开展更多聚焦慢性健康问题预防的信息系统研究的倡议。