How Wild Is Too Wild: Lessons Learned and Recommendations for Ecological Validity in Physiological Computing Research

Abstract

: While many call for increased ecological validity in physiological computing research, implementing very naturalistic studies can be challenging. In this paper, we present a way to quantify ecological validity to allow comparisons between studies. We also present a critical look at four types of studies that have emerged from quantifying the ecological validity of our past experiments. Finally, we provide recommendations and lessons learned from our own work conducting studies that span a wide range of levels of ecological validity for researchers who wish to do more in the wild research.