Online Archive of University of Virginia Scholarship
Optimizing E-Commerce: Framework Migration and Frontend Refactoring for an Intuitive Marketplace; The Contested Place of Artificial Intelligence in Mental Health6 views
Author
Smith, Phillip, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Virginia
Advisors
Norton, Peter, EN-Engineering and Society, University of Virginia
Morrison, Briana, EN-Comp Science Dept, University of Virginia
Abstract
The field of computer science is defined by a constant need for iterative development, a process of continuous improvement that is essentially required for organizations to maintain the utility of their products. Be it web development or the construction of AI models, businesses must keep improving their work as the field grows and evolves. Regardless of the sector of their work, developers ask themselves the same question as they improve their products: how may automated systems optimally balance efficacy, accessibility, affordability, and adaptability to human needs?
A hardware refurbishing company needed a software engineering intern to overhaul its existing e-commerce platform: an online store with constrained functionality. The site was migrated from its Django framework to React, which accommodates more digital features. The frontend product interface was redesigned using TypeScript logic to support dynamic product customization for product listings, consolidating more than 180 listings into roughly 40 flexible entries, preserving all configuration options for the site’s refurbished computers while simplifying user interaction.
In mental healthcare, conversational AI improves accessibility at a cost to safety. Because their design typically prioritizes user engagement over clinical efficacy, AI therapists can foster engineered dependency and AI sycophancy and fail patients in crisis. Vendors typically favor fast, unregulated innovation, while mental health professionals, represented for example in the American Psychiatric Association, demand urgent federal oversight. Because of a near-total regulatory vacuum, hazardous, unvalidated products spread as the debate over public safety and corporate profit thwarts action.
Degree
BS (Bachelor of Science)
Keywords
AI Therapy; E-Commerce; Artificial Intelligence
Notes
School of Engineering and Applied Science
Bachelor of Science in Computer Science
Technical Advisor: Briana Morrison
STS Advisor: Peter Norton
Technical Team Members: N/A
Language
English
Rights
All rights reserved by the author (no additional license for public reuse)
Smith, Phillip. Optimizing E-Commerce: Framework Migration and Frontend Refactoring for an Intuitive Marketplace; The Contested Place of Artificial Intelligence in Mental Health. University of Virginia, School of Engineering and Applied Science, BS (Bachelor of Science), 2025-12-14, https://doi.org/10.18130/vnas-vt07.