Design, Deception & Digital Experience
Date: Monday 10 Nov 2025
Room: S/3.20 Turing Suite
| Time | Presentation | Abstract | Authors | Contribution type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14:30-14:50 | A Co-Design Exploration of Screen Design Transitions | Young children’s technology usage is on the rise and transitioning from on screen to off screen can often be difficult for both parents and children. The aim of this study is to explore whether older children can assist in the design of these transitions with younger users in mind. 75 children, aged 9 - 11, participated in a co-design session where they were required to transition designs for children aged 3 - 5 years. To explore different transitioning solutions, the children were split in three conditions (in device, in app, and external transitions). Our paper offers insights into the way children can design for others in relation to screen time ending, we critique different scaffolding methods that were used and offer advice for others doing similar work in this regard, and we suggest some design ideas for further exploration. | Megan Baxter, Matthew Horton and Janet Read | Research |
| 14:50-15:10 | Deletion Considered Harmful | In a world of information overload, understanding how we can most effectively manage information is crucial to success. We set out to understand how people view deletion, the removal of material no longer needed: does it help by reducing clutter and improving the signal to noise ratio, or does the effort required to decide to delete something make it not worthwhile? How does deletion relate to other strategies like filing; do people who spend extensive time in filing also prune their materials too? We studied the behaviour of 51 knowledge workers though a series of questionnaires and interviews to evaluate a range of tactics they used aimed at organizing, filing, and retrieving digital resources. Our study reveals that deletion is consistently under-adopted compared to other tactics such as Filing, Coverage, Ontology, and Timeliness. Moreover, the empirical data indicate that deletion is actually detrimental to retrieval success and satisfaction. In this paper, we examine the practice of deletion, review the related literature, and present detailed statistical results and clustering outcomes that underscore its adverse effects. | Paul Englefield and Russell Beale | Research |
| 15:10-15:30 | Understanding #CreepyTech: Exploring the Context of Creepiness of Emerging Technology | While emerging technologies open new opportunities, some people might find them ‘creepy’. Research on ‘creepy technologies’ has focused on identifying and quantifying the specific characteristics that make them seem creepy. However, creepiness is subjective, and technologies seen as benign in one situation may become creepy in another. We contribute an exploratory analysis of tweets containing the keyword ‘creepy technology’ to identify how technological (e.g. what the technology can do) and contextual (e.g. application areas) factors might influence the perception of creepiness. | Argenis Ramirez Gomez, Carolina Fuentes, Samuelson Atiba, Nervo Verdezoto and Katarzyna Stawarz | Research |
| 15:30-15:40 | Leveraging Creepiness to Facilitate Ethical Design: Lessons Learned From a Design Workshop | Developing novel technologies tends to focus on eliminating or reducing undesirable features and characteristics of novel technologies. However, there is value in exploring the impact of intentionally ‘creepy’ designs that make these unwanted characteristics an explicit attribute. We have conducted a preliminary design workshop with 10 participants to explore the impact of this approach. The results show how, in focusing on creepiness as a resource for design, participants were organically prompted to reflect on the source of creepiness, namely identifying often overlooked attributes or characteristics. This facilitated the mitigation of potential side effects related to ethical issues that could emerge, as designers were informed by creepiness to create better designs of novel technologies. Overall, our work shows how creepiness could become an accessible framework to facilitate reflection on the ethical frictions of designing technologies based on users’ sensemaking and their relationship with interactive devices. | Katarzyna Stawarz, Alison Burrows and Argenis Ramirez Gomez | Late Breaking Work |