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PhD Research Proposal · Korina (Yoo-Kyung) Han · 한유경

Making an Issue Out of AI

Visual Perception + AICognitive LiteracyUX DesignAR · VR · AI

Visual Perception, Cognitive Literacy, and Human-Centered Design in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, AR, and VR. Society is adopting AI, AR, and VR at massive scale — without preparing humans to perceive or navigate the visual languages these systems create. This research does.


Thread

2012 → 2025 — One Continuous Question

2012 MS Thesis

Cognitive Design Principles

Children cannot navigate violent new media without cognitive design tools. AI mentor guides needed. ProQuest ID: 1521427

2025 PhD

Making an Issue Out of AI

All humans cannot navigate AI/AR/VR visual languages without perceptual design frameworks. Same question. Bigger stage.

22 Years of Enterprise Practice Between

AT&T, DirecTV, Northrop Grumman, SADA — designing for humans in complex AI-driven systems. The practitioner became the researcher.


Core

3 Research Axes

1
Axis One · PerceptionCognitive Science + UX

Visual Perception in AI, AR, and VR Systems

Questions: How does the human brain process — and break down — in new AI/AR/VR visual environments? What visual literacy frameworks are needed for humans to navigate digital visual languages safely?

Output: A Visual Perception Framework for AI/AR/VR UX — a systematic model of how human visual cognition functions in immersive AI environments.

2
Axis Two · DesignUX + Design Research

Designing AI/AR/VR for Human Perceptual Capacity

Questions: How should AI, AR, and VR interfaces be designed to match human visual and cognitive capacity — not overwhelm it? What UX patterns create cognitive safety in immersive digital environments?

Output: Human-Perceptual UX Design Guidelines for AI/AR/VR — practical design principles enabling practitioners to build systems that support human visual processing.

3
Axis Three · Education + CareEducation + Spiritual Care

Advanced Spiritual Care for the AI Age

Questions: How do we educate people to navigate AI/AR/VR demands before they are overwhelmed? What does spiritual and emotional preparation look like for AI-mediated environments?

Output: Visual Literacy + Spiritual Care Curriculum — educational framework preparing people to engage from a place of grounded understanding, not reactive confusion.


Title

Dissertation

Practice-Based PhD · HCI · Cognitive Design · Visual Literacy

"Making an Issue Out of AI: Visual Perception, Cognitive Literacy, and Human-Centered Design in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, AR, and VR"

Anchored in a problem society is not yet naming — and a researcher who has spent 22 years watching it develop from the inside. Bridges cognitive science, UX design practice, visual literacy education, and spiritual care into one coherent contribution no other candidate is positioned to make.

visibility
Outcome 01

Visual Perception Framework

Systematic model of how human visual cognition functions in immersive AI environments.

design_services
Outcome 02

Human-Perceptual UX Guidelines

Practical design principles for AI, AR, VR interfaces — applicable to enterprise, healthcare, education.

school
Outcome 03

Visual Literacy Curriculum

Educational framework preparing people to read and critically navigate AI/AR/VR environments.

favorite
Outcome 04

Spiritual Care + Tech Model

Framework for helping people engage with AI-mediated environments from a grounded, whole position.


Fit

Best-Fit PhD Programs

UCI

UC Irvine — Informatics PhD

Strong HCI + human-centered AI + social impact. Faculty researching visual perception, AI UX, and cognitive systems. Practice-led applicants welcomed.

USC

USC — MAP PhD

Practice-led · media arts · design + technology. Strong fit for visual literacy, AI/AR/VR design research, and education-focused inquiry.

RCA

Royal College of Art

World-leading practice-based design PhD. Highly receptive to industry practitioners. Strong track record in AI, immersive media, and human-centered design.

personPersonal Statement → descriptionResearch Chapters