Traces as an Approach to Design for Focal Things and Practices

Conference Paper (2016)
Author(s)

H.V. Robbins (TU Delft - Human Information Communication Design)

E Giaccardi (TU Delft - Human Information Communication Design)

E Karana (TU Delft - Emerging Materials)

Research Group
Human Information Communication Design
DOI related publication
https://doi.org/10.1145/2971485.2971538
More Info
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Publication Year
2016
Language
English
Research Group
Human Information Communication Design
Pages (from-to)
1-10
ISBN (print)
978-1-4503-4763-1

Abstract

This paper presents a novel way of using traces---not as indicators of skillfulness, aging, or evidence of interactions with technological tangible objects. Instead we propose traces as a design approach to reframe technologies in their socio-ecological context: where people, practices, and materials maintain a constant dialogue with one another. Contemporary technologies tend to disengage people from this context and the task the technology performs. This predicament has been referred to as "the device paradigm;" the resolution to which is in illuminating the technology's context by shaping them as "focal things and practices" (FT&P). This paper theorizes how design can frame technologies as FT&P. It takes the position that all three elements of the socio-ecological context (people, practices, and materials) can be linked together with traces. A design exploration, and the resulting research artifacts, theorize the argumentation of this paper and how traces can be used to support technologies as FT&P.

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