Three Paradigms of HCI

A very good article by Harrison et al 2006

Harrison, S., Tatar, D., and Sengers, P. The three paradigms of HCI. In Alt. chi, Proc CHI '07. ACM Press (2006). 

My research is situated in Paradigm 3. I think I can structure my discussions on approach according to these three paradigms.

 

An updated, extended and refined version of Harrison et al's article has been published at Interacting with Computers Journal: Making epistemological trouble: Third-paradigm HCI as successor science.

Creating a new assemblage vs Redesigning an existing assemblage

I need to discuss differences between designing a new system and redesigning an existing system in the context of ASD. My current studies focus on designing new systems and my results will inform mostly design of new systems/assemblages. However, I should also discuss what other dimensions a designer may need to consider for projects involving redesign. For instance, contextual design might provide with a useful basis to integrate agency sensitive qualities for redesign of existing systems.

From matters of fact to matters of concern

I think this transition to matters of concern as an emergent phenomenon can be helpful for recognizing and promoting different forms of agency and formulating the ASD approach.

References to be investigated are mostly by John Law and Bruno Latour.

John Law, After Method: Mess in Social Science Research, Routledge, London, 2004
Bruno Latour, "Where are the Missing Masses? The Sociology of a Few Mundane Artifacts", in Shaping Technology/Building Society: Studies in Sociotechnical Change, edited by Wiebe E. Bijker & John Law, MIT Press, USA, 1992, pp. 225–258.

A philosophical critic of human-centered design by Sha Xin Wei

"Our typical model of interaction has been of humans and their proxies engaging in an action-reaction ping-pong. And interaction design, even in its most enlightened mood has been centered on the human (viz. human-centered design), as if we knew what a human was, and where a human being ends and the rest of the world begins."

Xin Wei Sha. 2007. Poetics of performative space. AI Soc. 21, 4 (June 2007), 607-624

Agency over time

I'll not deal with long term transformations of agency over time, though I think it is important. Kaptelinin et al mentions about these changes over time and their importance:

"All practice is reformed and shaped by historical development. It is important to understand how tools are used not in a single instant of trying them out in a laboratory (for instance) but as usage unfolds over time. In that time, development may occur making the tool more useful and efficient than might be seen in a single observation" (Kaptelinin, 1999).

Thus,  I should at least discuss it at a certain extent to show my consideration of it.


Victor Kaptelinin, Bonnie A. Nardi, and Catriona Macaulay. 1999. Methods & tools: The activity checklist: a tool for representing the \“space\” of context. interactions 6, 4 (July 1999), 27-3

Agency as a Value in Design

the idea of agency as value in design is originated from the value sensitive design (VSD) domain. there are many values mentioned in VSD such as informed consent, privacy, trust etc. I was mostly inspired by VSD and named my approach agency sensitive design. sensitiveness is really a good phrase since it doesn't totally reject existing practices or ways of doing and knowing but at the same time develops an awareness and consideration of related matters at some degree and tries to integrate them into existing approaches. In this respect, sensitivity approaches can be considered as an evolutionary rather than revolutionary. This is again related to balance between familiar and novel.
It would be good to include a little discussion in the thesis about the consideration of agency as a value. Like a value in VSD.