Visualizing Self-Tracked Data to Navigate Well-being

2018—present

In my role as an Information Design and Data Visualization educator, I see teaching as a journey with my students, where we go beyond just learning techniques and software. Together, we use data as a tool for self-discovery, weaving seemingly random datasets into stories of personal growth. Since 2018, students entering my classroom have embarked on this explorative process, grounded in Positive Psychology's core concepts like gratitude, acts of kindness, goal-setting, and mindfulness. Through meticulously structured visualization projects that involve tracking and visually rendering their behavior and emotion over a period of time, they not only learn design skills but also engage in profound self-reflection, leading to meaningful well-being insights.

Below is a gallery showcasing a range of work that spans the journey from data to discovery. This includes projects from students in my Information Design class over the years*, many of whom are not design majors. Alongside these are my own creative projects and essays, inspired by the students and reflecting the insights gained from them through workshops and research. It serves as a living archive of our collective journey, using data visualization not only to tell stories and navigate well-being but also to highlight its effectiveness in revealing new perspectives.

*All student work displayed on this website is showcased with their permission.

Related Publications

  • 05.2025 Shen, Y., D. Scott Tangible Patterns in Material-based Data Visualizations for the Quantified-Self In: Data as Experiential Knowledge and Embodied Processes (EKSIG 2025) Conference
  • 06.2024 Shen, Y. From Data Points to Well-being: A Design Framework of Self-Tracked Data through the Lens of Positive Psychology, in Gray, C., Ciliotta Chehade, E., Hekkert, P., Forlano, L., Ciuccarelli, P., Lloyd, P. (eds.), DRS2024: Boston, 23–28 June, Boston, USA. Link
  • 10.2023 Glover, R., Shen, Y.Tracking Acts of Kindness through Comics: an Experimental Study In: IASDR2023 Milan: Life Changing Design. Link
  • 10.2023 Glover, R., Shen, Y.Tracking Acts of Kindness through Comics: an Experimental Study In: IASDR2023 Milan: Life Changing Design. Link
  • 04.2023 Shen, Y., Sanders, E.B.-N. Identity discovery: Small learning interventions as catalysts for change in design education. Journal of Design, Business & Society, Special Issue: ‘Design and Interdisciplinarity’, 9:1, pp. 127–44, Link
  • 11.2022 Shen, Y., Sanders, E.BN. Visualizing Stress – In-person and Virtual Co-designing with Chart-Based Tools. In: Bruyns, G., Wei, H. (eds) [ ] With Design: Reinventing Design Modes. IASDR 2021. Springer, Singapore. Link
  • 02.2022 Shen Y. Supporting Student Mental Health in an information Design Class By Employing Approaches Derived From Positive Psychology Dialectics Vol. 3 Issue 1, AIGA Design Educators’ Community and Michigan Publishing Link
  • 02.2021 Shen Y. Case Study: Visualizing College Students Lives During the Pandemic The Little Book of Global Health Design & Covid-19, Design Research Society (DRS) Link