Elizabeth Eikey, PhD – UCI ICTS Institute for Clinical and Translational Science

Saahir Khan, MD, PhD

Informatics

Mentor: Kai Zheng

Project Title: Mental Well-Being in Personal Informatics

I am a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Informatics and the Institute for Clinical and Translational Science at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). My research broadly focuses on understanding how to support and promote mental health through technology design. Using mixed method approaches, I investigate the uses, perceptions, and consequences of technologies, such as mobile apps and social media, particularly among individuals with mental health issues, such as depression and eating disorders. Through my research, I advocate for considering users’ emotional and psychological well-being in the development and deployment of technology. I am currently working on multiple projects, including assessing emotions and thought processes when engaging with personal health data, exploring existing self-management practices among college students with depression, and evaluating the use and effectiveness of mental health apps in community settings. In addition to my research at UCI, I am also an active mentor, working with individuals both in and outside of UCI. Bringing together diverse students and non-students from across the country, I developed the Mental Health in Design (MiD) Virtual Lab. Furthermore, I serve as a research advisor for the iSchool Inclusion Institute (i3). Prior to working as a post-doctoral fellow, I was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship to complete my PhD in Information Sciences and Technology at the Pennsylvania State University, where I also obtained a BS in Psychology.