Considering the inclusion of worth and values in the design of interactive artifacts

Abstract

The development and design of computational artifacts and their current widespread use in diverse contexts (from work/task oriented to ludic applications) needs to take into account end-users needs, likes/dislikes and broader societal issues including human values. However, the fast pace of technological developments highlight the acknowledgment that the process of defining the computational artifacts not only needs to understand the user but also engineering and designers creativity. In order to take into account these issues, we have been exploring the utilization of a framework to guide our own development efforts. The Worth-Centred Design (WCD) can be seen as a conceptual framework that intends to facilitate the process of making explicit the connections between high level concepts related to desired ends/worth/values and simple/basic/atomic features composing an (or to be) artifact [1, 2]. In this paper, our insights as a heterogeneous design team regarding the use of the WCD framework are presented. More specifically, two on-going cases studies are considered: (a) one concerning the on-going development of situated digital public displays and (b) the development of games to assist therapists of children with emotional and cognitive impairments to conduct their daily therapeutic activities. The utilization of the framework definitely improved our understanding of the relationships between features and high-level interaction goals. The representational tools and the process of constructing them helped making explicit the design alternatives and the design team assumptions regarding artifact use. However, there are hurdles to conquer, in particular, the creation of common ground within the team in relation to the definition of the terms employed and assuring that the emergence of common ground does not hide fundamental differences regarding the meaning of the design elements uncovered. Furthermore, more research is needed in order to understand how to elicit values related to the artifact from the different stakeholders of a particular social context.