Inside the Mirror, Wearing My own Body: Why UX Should Engage Monstrous Experiences

Paper Title

Inside the Mirror, Wearing My own Body: Why UX Should Engage Monstrous Experiences

Publication Info

• Topic area: User experience design and interaction with wearable systems through the lens of monster theory.
• Keywords: Monstrous experiences, wearable technologies, user experience, monster theory, ambiguity, discomfort, estrangement, fusion, fission.

Background and Problem

• Problem / challenge: Conventional user experience frameworks fail to capture ambiguous, deeply bodily experiences that arise from interactions with wearable technologies. These frameworks often reduce rich, complex sensations to static categories.
• Significance: Understanding these experiences can expand design possibilities, illuminate cultural shifts, and challenge simplistic schemas in interaction design.
• Motivation and related work: Prior work in HCI has explored discomfort, ambiguity, estrangement, sensory misalignment, and the uncanny valley, but these concepts do not fully address the paradoxical and contradictory nature of certain felt experiences. Monster theory from anthropology and philosophy provides a new lens to interpret these phenomena.

Solution

• Proposed approach: The paper introduces "monstrous experiences" as a framework for understanding ambiguous, deeply bodily sensations arising from wearable technologies. It uses constructs from monster theory—fusion, fission, massification, and incompleteness—to analyze these experiences.
• Novelty:
  1. Reframes ambiguous user experiences as meaningful encounters rather than design anomalies.
  2. Applies monster theory to interaction design, emphasizing its generative potential for ideation and analysis.
  3. Identifies how monstrous experiences challenge conventional UX categories and enrich design possibilities.
  4. Proposes a vocabulary for articulating and designing for these experiences.
• Procedure and key techniques:
  • Retrospective analysis of user experiences with four wearable systems: Wire Costume, Breathing Shell, Deep Pressure Garment, and Soma Corset.
  • Use of qualitative methods (diaries, interviews, video recordings, observations) informed by soma design.
  • Application of monster theory constructs to interpret user experiences and design implications.

Results

• Concrete findings: Monstrous experiences exhibit qualities such as fusion (e.g., merging human and machine attributes), fission (e.g., temporal or spatial separation of self), massification (e.g., collective sensations from multiple actuators), and incompleteness (e.g., phantom sensations of detached body parts). These experiences are often ambivalent, combining fascination and discomfort.
• Advantage over baselines: Unlike traditional UX frameworks, the proposed approach embraces ambiguity and complexity, allowing designers to engage with liminal sensations and transgressive experiences.
• Experiments / evaluation:
  • Four wearable systems were tested with diverse participants in lab and home settings.
  • Methods included body mapping, autobiographical design, and iterative reflection on somatic sensations.
  • Participants reported unique, metaphorical, and often eerie experiences, which were analyzed through the lens of monster theory.
• Limitations and future work: The framework may not suit domains requiring gentle or utilitarian designs, such as healthcare. Future work could explore broader applications in virtual environments, art installations, and therapeutic contexts.

Summary

This paper introduces the concept of "monstrous experiences" to analyze ambiguous, deeply bodily sensations arising from wearable technologies. Using constructs from monster theory—fusion, fission, massification, and incompleteness—it reframes these experiences as meaningful and generative for design. Empirical findings from four wearable systems demonstrate how these experiences challenge conventional UX categories and expand design possibilities. By embracing ambiguity and transgressive sensations, the framework offers new tools for interaction design, particularly in contexts like art, therapy, and immersive environments.