Jonathan Ericson

Jonathan Ericson

  • Associate Professor and Chair, Experience Design
  • Faculty Fellow, Hoffman Center for Business Ethics (HCBE)
  • Committee Member
  • Ph.D. in Cognitive Science, Brown University
  • Sc.M. in Cognitive Science, Brown University
  • B.S. in Physiology & Neurobiology, University of Connecticut

Research Interests

Analytical Psychology, Depth Psychology, Consciousness, Phenomenology, Complex Systems, Cognitive Science, History of Psychology

Bio

Jonathan Ericson, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Experience Design at Bentley University. He holds a Ph.D. in Cognitive Science from Brown University, and brings experience in design leadership and consulting. His research examines how design shapes human life, meaning, and consciousness, drawing on historical, ethical, and psychological approaches to develop ecological perspectives on technology. Jon teaches courses in design, cognition, data visualization, and innovation grounded in experiential learning.

Professional Memberships

  • Association of Computing Machinery: SIGSPATIAL 2017-01-01 - Present
  • Association of Computing Machinery: Special Interest Group for Design of Communication 2017-01-01 - Present
  • Association of Computing Machinery: Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques 2017-01-01 - Present
  • Association of Computing Machinery: Special Interest Group on Computer-Human Interaction 2017-01-01 - Present
  • Boston Computer-Human Interaction 2017-01-01 - Present
  • User Experience Professionals Association, Boston Chapter 2017-01-01 - Present
  • American Institute of Graphic Arts 2016-01-01 - Present
  • Association of Computing Machinery 2013-01-01 - Present
  • Interaction Design Association 2012-01-01 - Present
  • Human Factors & Ergonomics Society 2011-01-01 - Present
  • Spatial Intelligence Learning Center Spatial Network 2010-01-01 - Present
  • Vision Sciences Society 2009-01-01 - 2014-12-31
  • Environmental Design Research Association 2011-01-01 - 2012-12-31
  • Jungian Society of Scholarly Studies 2023-07-01 - Present

    • Awards and Honors

  • GIS S4 Fellowship, Brown University
  • Professor Lorrin A. Riggs Graduate Student Fellowship, Brown University
  • NASA Rhode Island Space Grant, Brown University
  • Brain Science Program Graduate Fellowship, Brown University
  • First Year Fellowship, Brown University
  • New England Scholar, University of Connecticut
  • Achievement Scholarship, University of Connecticut

    • Scholarly Contributions and Creative Productions

    Journal Articles

  • Duane, J., Ericson, J., McHugh, P. (2025). Digital nudges: a systematic narrative review and taxonomy. Behaviour and Information Technology, (44) 13 3250-3270. (Link)
  • Durieux, B., Gordon, J., Sanders, J., Duane, J., Blanch-Hartigan, D., Ericson, J. (2025). Nonverbal behavior in prognostic communication: A pilot experiment in virtual reality. PEC Innovation, (7) Issue (Link)
  • Ericson, J. D., Albert, W. S. (2024). Evidence for shifting cognitive strategies when icons appear in unexpected locations. Human Factors, (66) 3 891-903. (Link)
  • Sanders, J. J., Hartigan, D. B., Ericson, J. D., Tarbi, E., Rizzo, D., Gramling, R., van Vliet, L. (2023). Methodological innovations to strengthen evidence-based serious illness communication. Patient Education and Counseling, (114) 107790. (Link)
  • Cranmer, A., Broughel, A., Ericson, J. D., Goldberg, M., Dharni, K. (2023). Getting to 30 GW by 2030: Visual preferences of coastal residents for offshore wind farms on the US East Coast. Energy Policy, (173) 113366. (Link)
  • Duane, J. E., Stosic, M., Ericson, J. D., Durieux, B., Sanders, J., Robicheaux, E., Hartigan, D. B. (2022). The virtual doctor is in: the effect of telehealth visits on patient experience.
  • Ericson, J. D. (2022). Reimagining the Role of Friction in Experience Design. Journal of User Experience, (17) 4 131-139. (Link)
  • Stosic, M. D., Duane, J., Durieux, B., Sando, M., Robicheaux, E., Podolski, M., Sanders, J. J., Ericson, J. D., Hartigan, D. B. (2022). Patient preference for telehealth background shapes impressions of physicians and information recall: a randomized experiment. Telemedicine and e-Health, (28) 10 (Link)
  • Ericson, J. D., Albert, W., Duane, J. (2022). Political affiliation moderates subjective interpretations of COVID-19 graphs. Big Data & Society 16-Jan. (Link)
  • Ericson, J., Albert, W., Bernard, B., Brown, E. (2022). End-User License Agreements (EULAs) Investigating the impact of human-centered design on perceived usability, attitudes, and anticipated behavior. Information Design Journal, (26) 3 193-215. (Link)
  • Cranmer, A., Ericson, J., Broughel, A., Dharni, K. (2022). Immersion matters: The medium is the message for wind energy. Journal of Cleaner Production, (378) 134498. (Link)
  • Ericson, J. (2022). Mapping the Relationship Between Critical Thinking and Design Thinking. Journal of the Knowledge Economy, (13) 1 406-429. (Link)
  • Ericson, J., Albert, W., Duane, J. (2022). Political affiliation moderates subjective interpretations of COVID-19 graphs. Big Data and Society, (9) Issue 1 (Link)
  • Duane, J., Hartigan, D. B., Sanders, J. J., Caponigro, E., Robicheaux, E., Bernard, B., Podolski, M., Ericson, J. D. (2021). Environmental Considerations for Effective Telehealth Encounters: A Narrative Review and Implications for Best Practice. Telemedicine and e-Health (Link)
  • Hollander, J. B., Ericson, J. D., Wadley, D. (2021). Guest editorial for special issue, ASR. Architectural Science Review, (64) 4 317-318. (Link)
  • Sanders, J. J., Capponigro, E., Ericson, J. D., Dubey, M., Duane, J., Orr, S., Pirl, W., Tulsky, J., Hartigan, D. B. (2021). Virtual Environments to Study Emotional Responses to Clinical Communication: A scoping review. Patient Education and Counseling (Link)
  • Ericson, J. D., Albert, W. S., Bernard, B. P. (2021). Investigating the relationship between web object characteristics and cognitive conflict using mouse-tracking. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, (37) 2 99-117. (Link)
  • Ericson, J., Albert, W., Bernard, B. (2021). Investigating the Relationship between Web Object Characteristics and Cognitive Conflict Using Mouse-tracking. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, (37) Issue 2 (Link)
  • Ericson, J., Chrastil, E., Warren, W. (2021). Space syntax visibility graph analysis is not robust to changes in spatial and temporal resolution. Environment and Planning B: Urban Analytics and City Science, (48) 6 1478-1494. (Link)
  • Cranmer, A., Ericson, J. D., Ebers Broughel, A., Bernard, B., Robicheaux, E., Podolski, M. (2020). Worth a thousand words: Presenting wind turbines in virtual reality reveals new opportunities for social acceptance and visualization research. Energy Research & Social Science, (67) 101507. (Link)
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2020). Probing the Invariant Structure of Spatial Knowledge: Support for the cognitive graph hypothesis. Cognition, (104276) 20-Jan. (Link)
  • Warren, W. H., Rothman, D. B., Schnapp, B. H., Ericson, J. D. (2017). Wormholes in virtual space: From cognitive maps to cognitive graphs. Cognition, (166) 152-163. (Link)
  • Ericson, J. D. Investigating the impact of nonverbal cues on clinician-patient interactions using virtual reality. Patient Education and Counseling (In Progress)
  • Ohri, S., Sanders, J., Hartigan, D. B., Ericson, J. D. Building a VR Tool for analyzing verbal and non-verbal cues in a clinician-patient interaction. Journal of Medical Informatics Research (In Progress)
  • Electronic Digital Health Records and Physician Experiences. California Management Review (In Progress)

    • Book Chapters

  • Ericson, J. Seeman, A. (Ed.), Hughes, E. (Ed.), Roberts, T. (Ed.), Krueger, J. (Ed.) The Inner World of Loneliness: Self and self-estrangement in the work of D.W. Winnicott, Karen Horney, and C.G. Jung Loneliness in Our Time. London, UK: Bloomsbury Publishing, Inc. (Link)

    • Conference Proceedings

  • Duane, J., Stosic, M., Ericson, J. D., Durieux, B., Sanders, J., Robicheaux, E., Hartigan, D. B. (2022). “The Virtual Doctor Is In: The Effect of Telehealth Visits on Patient Experience” Proceedings of the 55th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS 2022)
  • Strater, L., Clamann, M., Kaber, D., Meglan, D., Procci, K., Bowers, C., Andrews, A., Ericson, J. D., Warren, W., Balakrishnan, B., Kallisteris, L. (2012). “Me and my VE” Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 56th Annual Meeting Los Angeles, CA

    • Digital and Electronic Media, Social Media, Blogs, Podcasts

  • 2024. "Medscape Medical News"
  • 2024. "Warp VR"
  • 2023. "Center for Health and Business (Social Media Channels)"
  • 2023. "Bentley University Newsroom"
  • 2023. "Loneliness and You [Podcast hosted by Prof. Axel Seeman]"

    • Exhibitions

  • Ericson, J. D. (2013). “Conwexity”

    • Presentations

  • Ericson, J. (2022). “Getting to 30GW by 2030: Visual preference of coastal residents for offshore windfarms” Presented at the REMforum – 12th Annual St. Gallen Forum for Management of Renewable Energies (MISTRAL Science Day / Paper Development Workshop) St. Gallen, Switzerland
  • Ericson, J. (2025). “The Art of Memory: Survival and revival of the human imagination” Presented at the Jungian Society for Scholarly Studies (JSSS) JSSS Conference: 20th Conference of Research in Jung and Analytical Psychology Loyola University, Chicago, IL
  • Ericson, J. (2025). “Psychoanalytic perspectives on self and self-alienation in the experience of loneliness” Presented at the Boston College, Lynch School of Education & Human Development Psychology & the Other Conference 2025 Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA
  • Ericson, J. (2025). “The Art of Memory: Imagination, inner alchemy, and emerging technologies” Presented at the London Arts-Based Research Council (LABRC) Alchemy Conference 2025: Exploring Metaphorical Transformations and Arts-Based Research University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
  • Duane, J. E. (2024). “Extended reality in serious illness communication research: an experimental feasibility study” Presented at the International Conference on Communication in Healthcare (ICCH) 2024 Zaragoza, Spain
  • (1964). “Field Experiences: Using Virtual Reality to Immerse Users in Hard-to-Reach Environments” Presented at the Bentley University Bentley Alumni Conference Waltham, MA
  • Ericson, J. (2024). “Design Thinking for Responsible and Participative Action” Presented at the Jungian Society of Scholarly Studies (JSSS) 2024 Albuquerque, NM
  • Ericson, J. D., Cranmer, A., Broughel, A. (2021). “Using virtual reality and visual discrete choice tasks to examine public attitudes toward offshore wind energy projects” Presented at the Behavior, Energy & Climate Change (BECC) Online
  • Ericson, J. D., Stosic, M., Hartigan, D. B., Sando, M., Durieux, B., Duane, J. E., Robicheaux, E. (2021). “What's in the Frame: Telehealth backgrounds shape patient experience and information recall” Presented at the Academy of Communication in Healthcare International Conference on Communication in Healthcare (ICCH) Online
  • Duane, J. E., Ericson, J. D., Hartigan, D. B., Sanders, J. J., Durieux, B., Caponigro, E., Robicheaux, E., Podolski, M., Sando, M., Bernard, B., Stosic, M. (2021). “Examining Patients' Perceptions of Telehealth Visits” Presented at the Bentley University Annual Research Showcase Bentley University
  • Duane, J., Ericson, J. D., Hartigan, D. B., Sanders, J., Podolski, M., Sando, M., Yen, B., Stosic, M. (2021). “Examining Patients' Perceptions of Telehealth Visits” Presented at the Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) Just Environments (EDRA '52) Detroit, MI
  • Ericson, J. D., Albert, W., Duane, J. (2021). “Do You See What I See? Examining the relationship between political attitudes and the perception of COVID-19 data visualizations” Presented at the Bentley University; Bryant University; Tufts University; UMass Lowell Analytics Without Borders 2021 Waltham, MA
  • Ericson, J. D., Albert, W., Duane, J. (2021). “Examining subjective and perceptual evaluations of COVID-19 data visualizations” Presented at the Bentley University Confronting the Pandemic with Research: Bentley University‚Äôs Contribution Waltham, MA
  • Duane, J., Hartigan, D. B., Sanders, J. J., Caponigro, E., Robicheaux, E., Bernard, B., Podolski, M., Ericson, J. D. (2021). “The role of environmental factors in Telehealth encounters” Presented at the Bentley University Confronting the Pandemic with Research: Bentley University‚Äôs Contribution Waltham, MA
  • Ericson, J. D. (2020). “Minds in Motion: Using positional data to study human behavior and cognition” Presented at the Tufts University Analytics Without Borders 2020 Boston, MA
  • Ericson, J. D. (2019). “The Joy of Friction” Presented at the User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA) UXPA Boston 2019 Boston, MA
  • Ericson, J. D., Chrastil, E. R., Warren, W. H. (2018). “Evaluating a space syntax measure at high resolution” Presented at the Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) EDRA 2018 Oklahoma City, OK
  • Ericson, J. D. (2017). “The Extended Workplace: Virtual and augmented reality systems” Presented at the Bentley University Research Colloquium on ‚ÄúThe Future of Work‚Äù Waltham, MA
  • Ericson, J. D. (2017). “Lost in Space: Navigating virtual and architectural environments.” Presented at the MIT Lincoln Labs Virtual and Augmented Reality Seminar Series Lexington, MA
  • Ericson, J. D. (2017). “Evaluating Space Syntax Measures at High Spatial Resolution” Presented at the Bentley University 5th¬†Annual Research Showcase Waltham, MA
  • Ericson, J. D. (2017). “The UX of Virtual Reality: A practical guide to immersive experience design” Presented at the Boston User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA) UXPA Boston 2017 Boston, MA
  • Ericson, J. D. (2017). “The Geometry of Cognitive Maps” Presented at the Bentley University 4th Annual Research Showcase Waltham, MA
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2014). “The Structure of Spatial Knowledge: Do humans learn the geometry, topology, or stable properties of the environment?” Presented at the Vision Sciences Society Annual Meeting St. Petersburg Beach, FL
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2012). “The Influence of Cast Shadows on Learning a non-Euclidean Virtual Hedge Maze Environment” Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society Minneapolis, MN
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2012). “The Escher Museum” Presented at the Demo presented at the Annual Meeting of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) Boston, MA
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2012). “The influence of cast shadows on learning a non-Euclidean virtual hedge maze environment” Presented at the Vision Sciences Society Annual Meeting Naples, FL
  • Ericson, J. D. (2011). “Integrating cognitive, artificial intelligence, and architectural approaches to spatial mapping” Presented at the Environmental Design & Research Association (EDRA) Annual Meeting Chicago, IL
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2010). “The influence of external landmarks on learning a non-Euclidean wormhole environment” Presented at the Spatial Cognition Mt. Hood, OR
  • Ericson, J. D. (2010). “The influence of external landmarks, the sun, and cast shadows on learning a wormhole environment” Presented at the Vision Sciences Society Annual Meeting Naples, FL
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2009). “Ordinal violations in human spatial knowledge for navigation” Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society Boston, MA
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2009). “‚ÄúRips‚Äù and ‚ÄúFolds‚Äù in virtual space: Ordinal violations in human spatial knowledge” Presented at the Vision Sciences Society Annual Meeting Naples, FL
  • Ericson, J. D., Warren, W. H. (2008). “Rips and folds in virtual space: Reliance on graph structure during navigation” Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society Chicago, IL
  • Ericson, J. (2025). “Empowerment of People with Disabilities Through Prosocial Behavior of Abled Consumers” Presented at the 2025 AMA Marketing and Public Policy Conference (Link)

    • Service

    Service: Department

  • Committee Member for XD Department Curriculum Committee - 2024-12-31
  • Committee Member for XD Department Rebranding Committee - 2024-12-31
  • Evaluator for XD Department Faculty Class Visits - 2024-12-31
  • XD Dept. Representative for Commencement - 2024-05-17
  • XD Department Representative for Admitted Student Day (Majors and Programs Fair) - 2024-04-13
  • Committee Member for Departmental Search Committee (Tenure-Track) 2022-09-01 - Present
  • Committee Member for Departmental Search Committee (Lecturer) 2022-09-01 - 2023-01-31
  • Committee Member for Search Committee (Executive Director, User Experience Center) 2021-12-01 - 2022-03-31
  • IDCC Dept. Representative for Admitted Student Day - 2021-03-23
  • XD Department Assurance of Learning Coordinator for Assurance of Learning - 2024-12-31
  • IDCC Dept. Representative for Admitted Student Day - 2020-04-04
  • HFID Program Representative for Graduate Preview Day - 2020-03-28
  • Committee Member for Faculty Search Committee - 2019-12-31
  • IDCC Dept. Representative for Fall Open House - 2019-10-06
  • IDCC Dept. Representative for Admitted Student Day - 2019-04-13
  • IDCC Dept. Representative for Admitted Student Day - 2018-04-14
  • IDCC Dept. Representative for Fall Open House - 2017-04-24
  • IDCC Dept. Representative for Admitted Student Day - 2017-04-08
  • Committee Member for Faculty Search Committee 2017-01-01 - 2019-12-31
  • Committee Member for MSHFID Thesis Committee 2017-01-01 - 2018-12-31

    • Service: Public

  • Community Volunteering Activities as a Grant Recipient for NASA RI Space Grant, Brown University - 2013-12-31
  • Guest Speaker for Brown Arts Mentoring (BAM) Program, Brown University - 2012-12-31

    • Service: Professional

  • Editorial Review Board Member for Frontiers in Psychology: Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology 2023-08-01 - Present
  • Editorial Review Board Member for Journal of User Experience 2022-01-01 - Present
  • ESL Editorial Assistant for New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME) 2021-03-01 - 2021-04-30
  • Editor (Associate), Journal for Architectural Science Review 2019-06-01 - 2021-08-31
  • Editorial Review Board Member for Journal of Usability Studies 2017-01-01 - 2022-12-31
  • Invited Lecture/Presentation for Real Industry - 2016-12-31

    • Service: Ph.D. Advising

  • Committee Member 2025/01 - Present
  • Committee Member 2025/01 - Present
  • Supervisor 2024/01 - 2025/01
  • Supervisor 2024/01 - Present
  • Committee Member 2024/01 - Present
  • Supervisor 2023/01 - 2023/03
  • Committee Member 2021/01 - 2022/03

    • Service: University

  • Advisor for Bentley Library Advisory Team 2024-12-18 - Present
  • Advisory Board Member for The Jeanne & Dan Valente Center for Arts & Sciences Advisory Board 2024-09-10 - Present
  • Committee Member for Human-Technology Interactions Research Team 2024-11-01 - 2025-01-31
  • Participant/Contributor for Technology, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship (TIE) Forum - 2024-09-25
  • Participant/Contributor for Technology, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship (TIE) Core Programs - 2024-06-28
  • for Jeanne & Dan Valente Center for Arts & Sciences - Present
  • Committee Member for Institutional Review Board 2022-09-16 - Present
  • Participant for Bentley University - 2022-10-20
  • Participant for Bentley's Strategic Positioning Process Engagement Session - 2022-09-13
  • Committee Member for Center for Health and Business (CHB) Executive Committee 2021-09-14 - Present
  • Panelist for Discover Bentley Faculty Panel - 2019-10-25
  • Participant for Bentley University's Strategic Planning - 2019-09-26
  • Participant for Brand Focus Group Workshop - 2019-09-24
  • HFID Program Representative for Graduate Student Reception - 2019-05-14
  • Committee Member for Academic Standards Committee 2018-10-03 - Present
  • Participant for Bentley University's Strategic Planning - 2018-09-20
  • Committee Member for Dean of Business Search Committee 2018-05-01 - 2019-01-28
  • Mentor (Faculty) for GA Conversation Partner's Program 2017-10-16 - 2018-05-31
  • Graduate Student Liaison for Sheridan Center, Brown University 2009-01-01 - 2010-12-31
  • Graduate Student Liaison for Brown University 2008-01-01 - 2009-12-31
  • Dept. Representative for Graduate Student Council, Brown University 2008-01-01 - 2009-12-31