Interviewee introduction:

On March 14, I interviewed Marvin, a friend of mine who took a meditation class with me in China and is now studying in Edinburgh. Here are highlights from our interview.

Key Themes:
Breath Awareness: Easier to notice breathing during meditation; the pandemic has had no impact on the Marvin’s breathing habits.

Breath & Emotion: Breathing patterns are closely related to emotions—steady breathing represents calmness, while rapid breathing occurs during stress or exercise.

Physical Sensation of Breathing: Deep breathing expands the chest cavity and makes airflow feel tighter, while shallow breathing is the natural state.

Visualization of Breathing: Feels like fog, with resistance, containing tiny airborne particles like dust and floral scents.

Color & Relaxation: White and green create a sense of relaxation, while black and neon colors induce tension.

Sound & Breathing: Environmental sounds can influence breathing rhythms, such as calming bookstore music versus fast-paced tracks that create tension.

Sound of Breathing: Preference for gentle music, such as vinyl records and blues.

Design Directions:
Visual Representation
Breathing pattern: Respondents compared breathing to ‘fog’, with fluidity and slight resistance, may use particle animation ,  cloud effect  performance, we can use soft colors such as the white, the blue , and use gradient light effects to make the change of breathing more intuitive.

Sound Design
Use ambient sounds, low-frequency resonances, soft rhythms to stabilize breathing, and soft white noise or nature sounds to enhance immersion

Interaction Experience
Breathing Visualization Feedback: As the user adjusts their breathing, the on-screen breath visualization could become clearer or more diffuse.

On March 8th, I interviewed Yilin, a medical student visiting Edinburgh, as part of our project exploring the visualization of breathing through interactive art. Her responses provided valuable insights into how breathing is perceived and experienced. Here’s a summary of the key points from our conversation:

Key Insights

1. Awareness of Breathing:
   Yilin mentioned that her awareness of breathing increased after the pandemic, especially as a medical student focused on lung health.

2. Noticing Breathing:
   She notices her breathing most during moments of anxiety or tension, when her breath becomes faster.

3. Emotional and Physical Differences:

   Steady breathing makes her feel calm, while rapid breathing increases anxiety.
   Deep breathing slows her heartbeat, while shallow breathing makes it faster.

4. Visualizing Breathing:
   Yilin imagines her breathing as similar to a cardiogram—sometimes stable, sometimes fluctuating.

5. Colors and Relaxation:
   She finds natural colors like sky blue and grass green relaxing, while black and white evoke tension, symbolizing death.

6. Sound and Breathing:
   Yilin feels that nature sounds (e.g., birds, leaves) help stabilize her breathing and make her feel calm. She compared her breath to the sound of wind through leaves.

Key Takeaways for Our Project

• Visuals: Incorporate cardiogram-like patterns to represent breathing, with smooth transitions for calm states and fluctuations for tension.

• Colors: Use natural, calming colors like blue and green to evoke relaxation.

• Sound: Integrate nature-inspired sounds to enhance the immersive experience.

Overview: Our group conducted a series of interviews to explore how people perceive breathing and its connection to emotions, physical state, visuals, and sound, supporting ourproject.

Interview Goals

• Understand when people become aware of their breathing.
• Explore how different breathing states (deep vs. rapid) affect emotions and the body.
• Gather insights on visual and auditory representations of breathing for interactive design.

Interview Participants

Participants included but were not limited to:

• Meditation practitioners : Highly aware of breathing patterns.
• Medical students : Providing a physiological perspective.
• General participants : Offering everyday experiences.

The interview findings provide diverse user perspectives for our interactive design.

Interview Outline

Interview Analysis

This interview focused on three core aspects: perception of breathing, emotional & physiological experiences, and audio-visual associations. The interview consisted of nine questions.

Interview Analysis English Version

Ethics Form & Interview Cosnents

THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

After studying the research of Ravinder Jerath et al. (2015) and Andrea Zaccaro et al. (2018), we found that slow breathing has a strong impact on emotions and the nervous system. Both studies show that breathing at a controlled pace can reduce stress, lower anxiety, and improve relaxation by activating the body’s natural calming system (the parasympathetic nervous system).

Their research highlights that breathing at 5.5–6 breaths per minute improves heart rate variability (HRV), strengthens the connection between the heart and lungs (cardiorespiratory synchronization), and increases alpha brain waves, which are linked to relaxation and focus. This breathing rate also lowers stress hormones (cortisol) and helps regulate emotions more effectively. Additionally, the studies suggest that the inhale-exhale ratio plays a crucial role in optimizing these benefits.

• 4:6 ratio (4 seconds inhale, 6 seconds exhale) → Best for deep relaxation and anxiety reduction.
• 5:5 ratio (5 seconds inhale, 5 seconds exhale) → Balanced autonomic function and improved emotional stability.
• A longer exhale activates the vagus nerve, further enhancing the body’s relaxation response.

Based on these findings, we decided to guide breathing in our interactive installation at 5.5–6 breaths per minute with an emphasis on a 4:6 inhale-exhale ratio for deeper relaxation. By using visual, sound, and biofeedback cues, the installation will help participants naturally slow down their breathing, creating a calming and immersive experience that supports mental well-being.

Bibliography

1. Jerath, R., Crawford, M. W., Barnes, V. A., & Harden, K. (2015). Self-Regulation of Breathing as a Primary Treatment for Anxiety. Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, 40, 107–115. DOI: 1007/s10484-015-9279-8
2. Zaccaro, A., Piarulli, A., Laurino, M., Garbella, E., Menicucci, D., Neri, B., & Gemignani, A. (2018). How Breath-Control Can Change Your Life: A Systematic Review on Psycho-Physiological Correlates of Slow Breathing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 12:353. DOI: 3389/fnhum.2018.00353