User-defined gestures for mediated social touch on touchscreens

Qianhui Wei, Jun Hu & Min Li

Mediated social touch is a new form of remote communication. Some researchers designed prototypes to deliver mediated social touch for mobile devices. However, there lacks a comprehensive analysis of the user-defined gestures of mediated social touch on touchscreens of mobile devices. We conducted an elicitation study for 24 social touch gestures on the touchscreen of smartphones and recorded physical parameters. We developed a user-defined gesture set considering physical properties and context. We provided classifications based on the movement forms. We found that social touch gestures with shorter duration were easier for participants to perform; participants were inclined to use social touch with an easier gesture more often. Participants were more likely to express happy or sad expressions rather than neutral emotions. Based on the findings, we discussed the implications for mediated social touch technology and its application on touchscreens.