Humans have been using technology since the earlier times to make their lives easier but that technology has also lead to some side effects such as pollution, industrial wastes, radiations etc. However, technology can also be used to promote pro-environmental behaviors. Persuasive technology is broadly defined as technology that is designed to change attitudes or behaviors of the users through convincement and social influence, but not through force or oppression. Persuasive technology aims to form a connection between technology and psychology in order to solve environmental issues.

1. PERSUASIVETECHNOLOGY ANDPRO-ENVIRONMENTALBEHAVIOR
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Humans have been using technology since the earlier times to make their lives easier but that
technology has also lead to some side effects such as pollution, industrial wastes, radiations etc.
However, technology can also be used to promote pro-environmental behaviors.
PERSUASIVE TECHNOLOGY:
Persuasive technology is broadly defined as technology that is designed to change attitudes or
behaviors of the users through convincement and social influence, but not through force or
oppression. Persuasive technology aims to form a connection between technology and psychology
in order to solve environmental issues.
TECHNOLOGY AND BEHAVIOUR:
Technology is not just changing the way people interact with the world, it is also changing the way
scientists study human behavior and the brain. New technologies are allowing psychological
scientists to take their research out of the lab and into the actual world where theories can be tested
in real world settings. But at the same time these technologies must be accepted by consumers to
be successful. Although the technology is being improved day by day such as electric cars, energy-
saving LEDs etc. their impact on the environment and the human behavior is still not less. As this
technology is effecting environment, it is in turn effecting human behavior which is also influenced
by the outer world. While at the same time technology itself is impacting human behavior too e.g.

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Use of more cars for comfort and to make their life fast. This faster technology is ultimately
decreasing the patience level in humans. They want everything to be quick.
We use the term “Persuasive technology” to point out at the system and environment that are
designed to change human cognition, attitudes and behaviors.
Technology, when used correctly, can actually have a very positive effect on a child's development.
Studies have found that our ability to identify key information buried within a cluster of characters
and visual stimuli (advertisements) has increased as technology has become more integrated in our
lives.
EXAMPLE:
An event called the "Nagahama Health Walk" was held in Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture for
three months from September to November 2015. The objective was to provide an opportunity for
local residents to exercise. Haruo Noma, the mastermind of the event says "Our target is to develop
technology and mechanisms to solve social and lifestyle issues using information technology as a
tool." His interest consistently turns to "Passing on the benefits of information technology to
society."
They then developed a smartphone application called "Tekupeko". With this, an automatic
measuring device measures body weight and energy consumption over the course of a day. The
results are accessible from a smartphone at any time. Noma says, "The key point here is the
'automatic' counting and confirmation using a familiar tool, like a smartphone." Thus, this
application aims to encourage physical activity by minimizing effort on the part of the user.

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HUMAN PERSUASION VS PESUASIVE TECHNOLOGY:
Persuasion is agued to be a typical human activity such as argumentation, praise, authority etc. and
many factors contribute to the persuasion such as trust-worthiness, communication strength,
involvement and the same factors applied are capable of making a technological persuaders.
We trust an Internet based knowledge more than what people say because internet cite that
information with references. In the same manner technology has played a very important
persuasive role using billboards, a traditional channel, to the internet, a modern channel.
Sometimes they even have human-like communication e.g. speech-to-text feature on Google. As
the time is passing these technologies are taking over human-persuaders.
 FUNCTIONS:
1. Social actor capable of establishing social relations
2. Form social influence
3. Medium that allows persuasive experience
4. Guide and support behavior
PERSUASIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROMOTING CHANGE:
Persuasive technology can help to promote change in various ways:
1. Making new behaviours easier and thus more attractive and controllable .e.g. one-click
shopping of organic food.
2. Modify the information, making it more personal and contextual  more persuasive e.g.
food advisors using technology to match the food with mood.

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3. New learning schemes that are enjoyable too e.g. learning games, riddles etc.
4. Providing feedback that help monitor the consequences of their behaviours e.g. feedback
check online shopping.
5. Activation of social norm through group interactions e.g. social media interaction.
CONCLUSION:
Persuasive technology and human behavior are closely interwoven. Acceptance of these
technologies by the consumers lead to their success but at the same times these technologies highly
effect human behavior. Nowadays, thousands of popular applications are designed to help users
improve their lives through behavioral adjustment (e.g., meditate more, stay hydrated). Smart
persuasive technology makes information more interactive and context specific. It can offer users
advice and feedback at the right time and with precision and consistency such as Siri answering
all the user questions by talking and same goes for new technology called Alexa. This kind of
consistency and efficiency cannot be achieved by human persuaders.