Communications Research in Action by Napoli Philip M.;Aslama Minna; & Minna Aslama

Author:Napoli, Philip M.;Aslama, Minna; & Minna Aslama
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Fordham University Press
Published: 2011-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

TOWARD PARTICIPATORY DESIGN

Most technological systems are designed by those with power and large amounts of capital, even if users constantly push back by modifying, reworking, and appropriating technologies for their own ends. VozMob strives to involve multiple stakeholders in shaping the platform’s technology and applications from the beginning. All members of our team participate in the design of the system through feature brainstorming, testing, and feedback. Our emphasis on participatory design draws on popular education methods (Freire 1970) as well as technology appropriation theories (Bar, Pisani, and Weber 2007).

Participatory design practices directly involve users in technology development to increase the technology’s effectiveness while democratizing the design process and empowering users (Asaro 2000; Spinuzzi 2005; Byrne and Alexander 2006). The aim is to address issues of power inherent in any technology design process, through participation and co-determination of design by stakeholders in an iterative, dialogic, and humanistic fashion (see Byrne and Alexander, 2006). Challenges of using a participatory process include the need to develop users’ technological literacy and capacities to participate in technology design (Luke et al. 2004), and the fact that participatory approaches often require more time and effort to build consensus throughout the process.

VozMob started with an open mind about how best to structure the project’s participatory design process, with hopes that the process itself could also emerge from participatory practices. The core component of the VozMob process is a weekly workshop where we share and analyze stories, test mobile tools (how they can be used and how they should be improved), brainstorm desired features, and discuss overall system design and architecture (for example, privacy issues or free software). Together we discuss these issues as we work hands-on with the phones and online blogging platform. The team tracks features and bugs that come out of the workshops through an online issue tracking system (dev.vozmob.net) and a dedicated Internet Relay Chat (IRC) channel (irc://freenode.net/vozmob), which off-site software developers use for meetings. Developers also participate in a weekly conference call, and periodic face-to-face meetings and intensive coding sessions.

Outside the workshops, we meet in a weekly seminar to discuss project developments and explore theories and relevant research. Additionally, the developers have led free software workshops and have presented at conferences alongside other project participants. These various channels have allowed developers and other VozMob actors to interact, even though the developers are based off-site in San Francisco and Uruguay. However, physical distance does limit direct collaboration and interaction.

The main tool that we have developed through this process is a customized version of the free and open content management software Drupal, which allows users to take photographs, record audio or video, attach descriptions, and send them to the site (vozmob.net) directly from their phone via multimedia messaging (MMS). Once their stories have been posted, users can log in to edit them. We have taken precautions to ensure anonymity of all users who upload to the blog; for example, we randomize default usernames and mask identifying information inserted by the phone companies. Those users who want to do so can register an account in whatever name they choose.

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