I am a researcher, designer, builder, and more.

Professional Bio

I am Muhammad Zaid Arif, an HCI researcher, designer, and builder based in Canada. My work focuses on UX research, ethical interaction design, persuasive systems, children's technology, and learning experiences. I am currently pursuing doctoral work in Human-Computer Interaction and Computational Sciences, while also working across research, teaching, and product-building contexts.

I study deceptive design, user agency, technical learning, and the everyday ways interfaces shape behaviour. I also build working products because implementation reveals problems that research artifacts alone can miss.

I do not fit neatly into one box.

I research. I design. I build. I teach. I write. I test. I fix. I keep going. That range is not a lack of focus. It is the foundation of how I work.

I understand research because I have conducted it. I understand design because I have structured interfaces. I understand implementation because I have built and debugged products myself.

I work systematically, but I do not pretend projects are linear.

A clear plan matters. So does the ability to adapt. I often begin with a structured direction, then discover bugs, edge cases, design flaws, and new possibilities along the way. I do not see that as failure. I see it as the real work.

Values

My work is shaped by a simple responsibility: technology should help people more than it harms them. I care about agency, fairness, learning, and the quiet ways interfaces influence behaviour.

My values also shape the kind of work I want to do. I am drawn to projects that create benefit, reduce harm, and respect the people affected by the systems we build.