Wearable tech enables us to access information and interact with the world in new ways. It can help people monitor their heart rate or blood pressure, track calories burned or sleep patterns, and manage training regimes. In healthcare settings, wearables can also be used to prevent or detect COVID-19 symptoms, flag early warning signs and communicate emergency alerts.
In addition to the aforementioned benefits, wearables can also empower individuals by encouraging healthy behaviors and helping them to take more control of their health. However, the ability of wearables to empower individuals depends on several factors. Barriers include a perceived lack of accuracy, the need to use a companion app for interpretation, technical difficulties and privacy concerns. [67] Additionally, barriers may arise when users believe they are underperforming compared to other wearables users, which can discourage continued use over time. [68] To counter this, designers should consider how to improve user feedback by providing positive reinforcement for successes and encouraging users to persevere despite challenges in meeting their targets.
Some wearables are designed to be worn in specific contexts, such as smart watches, VR headsets and smart rings, or are built into sports equipment, such as bats and balls, to enable real-time data capture and communication with coaches. Others have been developed for consumer applications, such as GPS-enabled smartwatches and tracking devices to help parents locate their children, or virtual assistants that clip to a person’s clothing and are controlled by voice and gestures.