SHICHAO ZHAO
I am an Assistant Professor of Design and Innovation Management in the College of Business at Oregon State University. I am a design researcher exploring the potential of how interactive technology can be designed to support cross-cultural understanding (e.g. for audiences of diverse cultural backgrounds) of Intangible Cultural Heritage to strengthen community wellbeing and participation, as well as enhance engagement, facilitate cultural storytelling, while empowering and strengthening diverse communities.
Publications
Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles
Cheng, L., Lilley, D., Zhao, S., Lofthouse, V. and Barnes, J., accepted. ‘Applying design for sustainable behaviour and product care to reduce damage behaviours: A case study of the bike-sharing system’, Design Studies. (pdf)
Zhu, X., Liu, F., Xia, G., Wang, S., Duan, Y., Yu, L., Zhao, S. and Li, M., 2026. ‘Immersive HCI for intangible cultural heritage in tourism contexts: A narrative review of design and evaluation’, Sustainability, 18(1), article 153. (pdf)
Zhang, Y., Zhao, S. and Merritt, K., 2025. ‘“Meme-ing” across cultures: Understanding how non-EU international students in the UK use internet memes for cultural adaptation and identity’, Behavioral Sciences, 15(5), article 693. (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2022. ‘Creating futuristic heritage experiences: An exploratory co-design study through design fiction’, Sustainability, 14(19), article 12027. (pdf)
Merritt, K. and Zhao, S., 2022. ‘The power of live stream commerce: A case study of how live stream commerce can be utilised in the traditional British retailing sector’, Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 8(2), article 71. (pdf)
Merritt, K. and Zhao, S., 2021. ‘An innovative reflection based on critically applying UX design principles’, Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 7(2), article 125. (pdf)
Merritt, K. and Zhao, S., 2020. ‘An investigation of what factors determine the way in which customer satisfaction is increased through omni-channel marketing in retail’, Administrative Sciences, 10(4), article 85. (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2019. ‘An analysis of interactive technology’s effect on the appreciation of traditional Chinese painting: A review of case studies’, The International Journal of New Media, Technology, and the Arts, 14(3), article 12. (pdf)
Zhao, S., Kirk, D., Bowen, S. and Wright, P., 2019. ‘Supporting the cross-cultural appreciation of traditional Chinese puppetry through a digital gesture library’, ACM Journal on Computing and Cultural Heritage, 12(4), article 28. (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2019. ‘Exploring how interactive technology enhances gesture-based expression and engagement: A design study’, Multimodal Technologies and Interaction, 3(1), article 13. (pdf)
Zhao, S., Kirk, D., Bowen, S. and Wright, P., 2019. ‘Cross-cultural understanding of Chinese traditional puppetry: Integrating digital technology to enhance audience engagement’, The International Journal of Intangible Heritage, 14, pp. 139–154. (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2018. ‘Enhancing the appreciation of traditional Chinese painting using interactive technology’, Multimodal Technologies and Interaction, 2(2), article 16. (pdf)
Peer-Reviewed Conference Proceedings
Fu, Q., Zhao, S., Barnes, J. and Jaillant, L., 2026. ‘Cultural heritage and resilience in immigrant communities: Exploring interactive technology opportunities for mutual acculturation’, Proceedings of the ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS ’26). (pdf)
Fu, Q., Zhao, S., Barnes, J., Jaillant, L. and Merritt, K., 2026. ‘Designing cultural resilience as practice: Participatory design for immigrant heritage’, Proceedings of the ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS ’26). (pdf)
Cheng, Y., Zhao, S., Yang, J. and Merritt, K., 2026. ‘From focal to scattered: Designing culturally adaptive VR for Chinese architectural painting’, in Ardito, C. et al. (eds.) Human-Computer Interaction – INTERACT 2025. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 16108. Cham: Springer. (pdf)
Pooley, A., Mitchell, V., May, A. and Zhao, S., 2024. ‘Exploring the spatial context of householders’ interactions with a virtual assistant’, Proceedings of the 38th British Computer Society Human-Computer Interaction Conference, pp. 123–134. (pdf)
Landa-Avila, C., Zhao, S., Celik, S., Bagchi, P. and Brodersen Hansen, N., 2024. ‘Systemic citizens: Equity, power, and relational autonomy’, Proceedings of the Design Research Society Conference 2024 (DRS2024). (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2023. ‘Involving British-Chinese immigrants in participatory action research: Lessons learnt from the field’, Proceedings of the ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS ’23). Honourable Mention Award, Top 5%. (pdf)
Merritt, K. and Zhao, S., 2021. ‘Software design and development of an appointment booking system: A design study’, in Ur Rehman, M. and Zoha, A. (eds.) Body Area Networks: Smart IoT and Big Data for Intelligent Health Management. Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering, vol. 420. Cham: Springer. (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2020. ‘A methodological reflection: Deconstructing cultural elements for enhancing cross-cultural appreciation of Chinese intangible cultural heritage’, in Rauterberg, M. (ed.) Culture and Computing. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 12215. Cham: Springer. (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2019. ‘An analysis of how interactive technology supports the appreciation of traditional Chinese puppetry: A review of case studies’, in Brooks, A. and Brooks, E. (eds.) Interactivity, Game Creation, Design, Learning, and Innovation. Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering, vol. 328. Cham: Springer. (pdf)
Book Chapters and Edited Proceedings
Tang, T., Wilson, P., Zhao, S. and Nam, K., 2022. ‘Regional policy roadmaps: University of Leeds’, in Lindström Sol, S., Sarantou, M., Remotti, S. and Gutiérrez Novoa, C. (eds.) The Role of the Arts in Mitigating Societal Challenges: Regional Policy Roadmaps for Seven European Countries. University of Lapland: Zenodo. (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2021. ‘A storytelling method reflection: Demonstrating and sharing immigrant heritage through an SPS strategy during COVID-19’, in Kárpáti, A. and Sarantou, M. (eds.) Arts-based Social Interventions: First Results of the AMASS Testbed. University of Lapland: Zenodo. (pdf)
Workshop Papers and Extended Abstracts
Zhao, S., 2023. ‘Building resilient communities to overcome diaspora through producing and sharing immigrant stories: Technology design to enhance resilience’, DIS Workshop on Designing for and Reflecting upon Resilience in Health and Wellbeing. (pdf)
Zhao, S., 2016. ‘Using interactive digital media to support transcultural understanding of intangible Chinese cultural heritage’, CHI Workshop on Involving the Crowd in Future Museum Experience Design. (pdf)
