M.J.B. Boon
Please Note
12 records found
1
Playscapes
Creating Space for Young Children's Physical Activity and Play
Design Strategies for Promoting Young Children’s Physical Activity
A Playscapes Perspective
Objects with intent
Designing Everyday Things as Collaborative Partners
In HCI there is an increasing trend to approach computing artifacts as agents. In this article, we make a case for "Objects with Intent" (OwI's) as an emerging type of agents that take advantage of the meaning of everyday things as the site for their intelligence and agency. After reviewing relevant existing research in HCI and related fields, we demonstrate how OwI's provide a new perspective on human-agent interaction. We then elaborate on how the notion of OwI's is informed by Dennett's theory of intentionality and Leontiev's Activity Theory. Thereafter, we illustrate the application of OwI's through the design case of Fizzy, a robotic ball used to stimulate hospitalized children to engage in physical play. We end by discussing the nature and merit of OwI's and reflecting more broadly on the challenges involved in designing OwI's.
provide clarity about or guidance towards the designer’s intended behavioural outcome. In this paper we propose an alternative perspective that emphasizes
ambiguity (i.e. affording multiple interpretations) and open-endedness (i.e. affording multiple courses of action). We build on two design cases in pediatric healthcare in
which the aim was to stimulate young children’s physical activity during hospitalization. Instead of commonly used exercise-based approaches, our focus was
on physical activity in the form of spontaneous and unstructured play. We describe how interactions with ambiguous and open-ended playthings gave rise to intended
behavioural outcomes. The findings are explained by drawing on Activity Theory, suggesting products can direct and leave things open on different levels of interaction.
With our contribution we open up a new design space for behavioural design that reconciles designer’s intentions with end user’s appropriation. ...
provide clarity about or guidance towards the designer’s intended behavioural outcome. In this paper we propose an alternative perspective that emphasizes
ambiguity (i.e. affording multiple interpretations) and open-endedness (i.e. affording multiple courses of action). We build on two design cases in pediatric healthcare in
which the aim was to stimulate young children’s physical activity during hospitalization. Instead of commonly used exercise-based approaches, our focus was
on physical activity in the form of spontaneous and unstructured play. We describe how interactions with ambiguous and open-ended playthings gave rise to intended
behavioural outcomes. The findings are explained by drawing on Activity Theory, suggesting products can direct and leave things open on different levels of interaction.
With our contribution we open up a new design space for behavioural design that reconciles designer’s intentions with end user’s appropriation.
What You Gain and What It Takes
A Student’s Reflection on a Participatory Design Project
Beagle
A stimulating quest throughout the hospital
Beagle is a design concept aiming to improve the quality of life and the development of hospitalized adolescents (12-16) with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). During hospitalization CF patients are isolated to prevent cross infection of bacteria. They suffer from boredom, a decrease in social contact and a negatively affected physical activity level. Beagle is a concept that facilitates various forms of playful interaction for adolescents throughout the hospital, motivating them to become physically active within the boundaries of the hospital's installed segregation policy. A first explorative and qualitative study was conducted to see how adolescents experience and use Beagle.
Loose parts for children with autism
Design opportunities and implications
...
Loose parts are ambiguous and open-ended materials that provide endless possibilities in children’s play. Loose parts foster creative and dramatic play which in turn stimulates the development of children’s social, emotional and cognitive skills. In this paper we explore the potential value of loose parts for children with autism because their development of said skills tends to either not happen or at a very low pace. We describe the effects of a lagging Theory of Mind and Sensory Integration Disorder, which are both often associated with autistic spectrum disorders. This brings the diverse and complex nature of these disorders to light, virtually excluding universal design guidelines. However, several concrete design implications and opportunities are suggested. Our next steps entail engaging with autistic children in their context and trying out tailor made loose parts.
Playscapes
A design perspective on young children's physical play
In early childhood, children develop motor skills that form the basis of their future physical activities. This development can stagnate when children face long-term hospitalization due to injury or disease. Most interventions to facilitate their physical development are built on exercise and structured play, and have ignored the value of spontaneous and unstructured play. For this reason, we introduce 'Playscapes' as a design perspective on young children's physical play. Playscapes is inspired by outdoor play, and accounts for three qualities: bodily play, dispersed play and free play. These qualities can help interaction designers to generate designs that help children playfully develop physical competence. The design perspective is used for developing two design interventions specifically for children with cancer. To point out the merits of Playscapes, the design interventions are compared with two exercise-based interventions. Finally, challenges and future steps are discussed for further developing Playscapes.