Trained as a sociologist, I have more than 5 years of experience conducting research in a mixture of academic and industry contexts. I have both led and collaborated on the full research cycle, including designing survey instruments, conducting in-depth interviews with users, analyzing both qualitative and quantitative data, creating deliverables. My recent user-centered research projects include (Note: due to NDA, my current work at Google is not available for public viewing):

Beyond the Great Wall:
New Expatriates & New Media in China

This is a longitudinal research project based on my dissertation. I've designed and conducted over 12 months of fieldwork and interviews with 68 international users to understand the obstacles and opportunities for adopting a variety of mobile technologies in cross-cultural contexts. I've conducted both in-person and remote interviews with participants at different time/stages of their journeys.

Design for Inclusivity: What We Learn from Neighborhoods  

This is a collaborative project I led as a research fellow, sponsored by the Center for Technology, Society & Policy at UC-Berkeley. We've conducted mixed-method research with Nextdoor.com users and stakeholders in selected Oakland neighborhoods to understand how to improve user happiness and the social impact of the site.

UX Research with Travel Service Providers 

This is a freelance project I've conducted for a B2C travel website. The stakeholders want to learn more about what motivates small-business owners to subscribe and publish their service. I've designed surveys and follow-up with usability interviews to address the stakeholders' needs and presented possible solutions to the problem of "incomplete" user-generated contents on the website.