Let's Make a Community [of Practice]: Using Community-Based Participatory Design to Support Interdependence

Paper Title

"Let's Make a Community [of Practice]: Using Community-Based Participatory Design to Support Interdependence"

Publication Info

• Topic area: Community-based participatory design for dementia-inclusive technologies.
• Keywords: Community of Practice, dementia, participatory design, interdependence, accessibility, inclusion, technology design, social agency, community engagement, HCI.

Background and Problem

• Problem / challenge: Existing research on dementia-friendly technologies often neglects the role of community networks in influencing design and effectiveness. There is limited understanding of how design processes interact with the complex interdependencies of people with dementia and their communities.
• Significance: Addressing this gap can lead to more inclusive and sustainable designs, fostering interdependence and reducing systemic barriers for people living with dementia.
• Motivation and related work: Prior work has explored person-centred care, interdependence in accessibility, and dementia-friendly environments but lacks focus on community dynamics and non-participation. This paper builds on Wenger’s Communities of Practice framework to analyze how participatory design workshops can foster interdependence and inclusion.

Solution

• Proposed approach: Community-Based Participatory Design (CBPD) workshops analyzed through Wenger’s Communities of Practice framework to explore how participants create inclusive experiences and address systemic barriers.
• Novelty:
  1. Application of Wenger’s Modes of Belonging (engagement, alignment, imagination) to CBPD workshops.
  2. Analysis of systemic barriers and non-participation in dementia-friendly design processes.
  3. Recommendations for embedding interdependence and community-building into technology design.
  4. Insights into how CBPD workshops can act as temporary communities of practice.
• Procedure and key techniques:
  • Conducted five two-part workshops in various community spaces and virtually.
  • Used activities like “I like, I wish, I want” and co-design exercises with technology prompt cards.
  • Recruited participants with early-stage dementia, informal carers, and program coordinators.
  • Analyzed data through thematic coding and Wenger’s framework, focusing on modes of belonging and external boundaries.

Results

• Concrete findings:
  • Participants demonstrated agency in fostering engagement, alignment, and imagination within workshops.
  • Systemic barriers like inadequate resources, transportation challenges, and post-COVID-19 impacts marginalize people with dementia.
  • Familiarity with spaces and technologies facilitated participation, while unfamiliarity and stigmas hindered it.
• Advantage over baselines:
  • Highlights the active role of participants in shaping inclusive practices, contrasting with traditional views of people with dementia as passive recipients.
  • Identifies specific barriers and opportunities for designing technologies that support interdependence.
• Experiments / evaluation:
  • Workshops held in five locations (art museum, history museum, city farm, church, virtual via Zoom) with 14 participants.
  • Data collected through observations, recordings, and participant-created materials.
  • Analyzed using inductive and deductive thematic approaches.
• Limitations and future work:
  • Retrospective application of Wenger’s framework; future work could proactively integrate it into design processes.
  • Limited diversity in participants (predominantly white, affluent, early-stage dementia); future work should address barriers for underrepresented groups.

Summary

This study used Community-Based Participatory Design (CBPD) workshops to explore how people with dementia, carers, and program coordinators create inclusive practices and address systemic barriers. Analyzing these workshops through Wenger’s Communities of Practice framework revealed how participants enacted engagement, alignment, and imagination to foster interdependence. Findings highlight the agency of participants in shaping inclusive spaces and the systemic challenges they face, such as inadequate resources and transportation. The study provides a roadmap for designing technologies that support interdependence and offers recommendations for addressing non-participation in community-focused research. These insights contribute to HCI’s understanding of inclusive design and community-building.