Reciprocal research: Providing value in design research from the outset in the rural United States

Benjamin V. Hanrahan, Ning F. Ma, Eber Betanzos, Saiph Savage

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

Researchers in various fields have been discussing the ethics of field research, particularly their responsibility to provide concrete benefits to participants. For example, when designing technology for their participants the discussion has centered around how and whether the technology benefits participants. We argue, that design projects can be reoriented towards benefiting participants from the outset, by slightly changing the process, activities, and initial object of design. Focusing instead on how to immediately impact the goals of the participants, designers can then progressively introduce technology to scale their impact. In this paper we present an ongoing instantiation of this process in rural West Virginia, where we have been teaching computer classes at a local library. We have found that our participants and partners are more appreciative of our efforts, and that the data we are gathering is just as, if not more, rich than previous design methodologies that we have used.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development, ICTD 2020
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery
ISBN (Electronic)9781450387620
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 17 2020
Event2020 International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development, ICTD 2020 - Guayaquil, Ecuador
Duration: Jun 17 2020Jun 20 2020

Publication series

NameACM International Conference Proceeding Series

Conference

Conference2020 International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development, ICTD 2020
Country/TerritoryEcuador
CityGuayaquil
Period6/17/206/20/20

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Software
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition
  • Computer Networks and Communications

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Reciprocal research: Providing value in design research from the outset in the rural United States'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this