Preferred notification modalities depending on the location and the location-based activity

Smartphones offer different modalities to inform about incoming notifications. They are perceived differently in terms of pleasantness and disruptiveness, depending on the receptivity and interruptibility of the user, among others. Contextual factors such as the user's location, activity, and task engagement level further influence this perception. Within a lab study with 40 tech-savvy participants, we investigated suitable notification modalities for different place types. We found that a user's receptivity, the disruptiveness of a notification, and the task engagement correlate and that they differ per place type with statistical significance and small to large effect sizes. Due to their unobtrusive nature, silent mode and vibration are preferred notification modalities at all places - silent mode especially at "do not disturb" locations ("library", "movie theater"), at places where users tend to be in company ("café", "restaurant"), or where users have to focus ("university", "work"). Ringtone is considered obtrusive and undesired and is only tolerated at a few places at which users tend to be alone ("home") or which are rather loud so that the auditory alert does not disturb others too much ("gas station").