StoryChat: Designing a Narrative-Based Viewer Participation Tool for Live Streaming Chatrooms

Live streaming platforms and existing viewer participation tools enable users to interact and engage with an online community, but the anonymity and scale of chat usually result in the spread of negative comments. However, only a few existing moderation tools investigate the influence of proactive moderation on viewers’ engagement and prosocial behavior. To address this, we developed StoryChat, a narrative-based viewer participation tool that utilizes a dynamic graphical plot to reflect chatroom negativity. We crafted the narrative through a viewer-centered (N=65) iterative design process and evaluated the tool with 48 experienced viewers in a deployment study. We discovered that StoryChat encouraged viewers to contribute prosocial comments, increased viewer engagement, and fostered viewers’ sense of community. Viewers reported a closer connection between streamers and other viewers because of the narrative design, suggesting that narrative-based viewer engagement tools have the potential to encourage community engagement and prosocial behaviors.