An Entanglement Perspective on How Older Adults Use and Design Emerging Ubiquitous Technologies

Abstract

Over the last decade, CSCW and HCI researchers have adopted different user-centered approaches to include older adults' perspectives in designing the next generation of emerging technologies such as virtual reality, Internet of Things technologies, and conversational voice-based AI assistants. However, a body of emerging research is showing what older adults share in such user-centered design activities might not reflect their actual needs or preference. Hence, for my dissertation I seek to go beyond what older adults simply say or do in user-centered design activities and understand the larger socio-material configurations in which older individuals and their technologies participate. To do this, I use the Entanglement HCI framework to analyze data from interviews and co-design activities with older adults focused on the topic of use and design of conversational AI assistants. In doing so, my dissertation will provide an empirical understanding of a) the different actors (human and non-human) that configure older adults' use and perception of emerging technologies, b) identify implications for designing conversation voice technologies for older adults, and c) provide a preliminary understanding of what Entanglement HCI has to offer for understanding some challenging phenomena of Aging in CSCW and HCI, and thereby provide new perspectives on how we could include older adults in designing the next generation of technologies. CCS CONCEPTS• Human-centered computing; • Human computer interaction (HCI); • User characteristics; • Social and professional topics; • Seniors;

Enacting Entanglement: CreaTures, Socio-Technical Collaboration and Designing a Transformative Ethos

“…Similarly, Latva-Somppi et al (2021) work with entanglements to explore how design might act with responsibility, hope and care. Frauenberger argues that our intimate entanglement with digital technologies is challenging the foundations of current HCI research and practice (2019), which Pradhan (2021) takes forward into a CSCW analysis of AI and older people's care. Other approaches to applying the idea of entanglement include Kou and Gui (2018) looking at the phenomenon of Quantified Self and Tchernavskij and Bødker (2022) talking of entangled artefacts.…”