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Material Speculation: Actual Artifacts for Critical Inquiry

Resource type
Date created
2015-06
Authors/Contributors
Author: Wakkary, Ron
Author: William Odom
Author: Garnet Hertz
Author: Lin, Henry
Abstract
Speculative and fictional approaches have long been implemented in human-computer interaction and design techniques through scenarios, prototypes, forecasting, and envisionments. Recently, speculative and critical design approaches have reflectively explored and questioned possible, and preferable futures in HCI research. We propose a complementary concept – material speculation – that utilizes actual and situated design artifacts in the everyday as a site of critical inquiry. We see the literary theory of possible worlds and the related concept of the counterfactual as informative to this work. We present five examples of interaction design artifacts that can be viewed as material speculations. We conclude with a discussion of characteristics of material speculations and their implications for future design-oriented research.
Document
Published as
Ron Wakkary, William Odom, Sabrina Hauser, Garnet Hertz, and Henry Lin. 2015. Material speculation: actual artifacts for critical inquiry. In Proceedings of The Fifth Decennial Aarhus Conference on Critical Alternatives (AA '15). Aarhus University Press 97-108. DOI=http://dx.doi.org/10.7146/ aahcc.v1i1.21299
Publication title
In Proceedings of The Fifth Decennial Aarhus Conference on Critical Alternatives
Document title
Material Speculation: Actual Artifacts for Critical Inquiry
Publisher
Aarhus University Press
Date
2015
First page
97
Last page
108
Copyright statement
Copyright is held by the author(s).
Permissions
You are free to copy, distribute and transmit this work under the following conditions: You must give attribution to the work (but not in any way that suggests that the author endorses you or your use of the work); You may not use this work for commercial purposes.
Scholarly level
Peer reviewed?
Yes
Language
English
Member of collection
Download file Size
Material Speculation_PROOF_FINAL.pdf 5.53 MB

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