Opening Up Human-Robot CollaborationAs we see robots being deployed into new places in everyday life, questions arise about what the features of `human-robot collaboration' (HRC) might look like. Recent work anticipates the need for more CSCW-oriented studies of HRC, given the increasing adoption of CSCW concepts to HRC research. We address this via an ethnomethodological study of encounters between pedestrians and food delivery robots on public streets. Our analysis---using video recorded fragments of what happens on the street---demonstrates how passers-by manage walking trajectories in ways that account for robot actions, contributing an analysis that articulates how people accomplish practices of following and overtaking robots, passing by and crossing paths with them. We show that the picture of human-robot collaboration is drawn with `unequal' asymmetries of action and intelligibility, with humans contributing considerable work to get something that looks like collaboration achieved. This raises questions for how we talk about collaboration in HRC from a CSCW perspective, and how this notion can and should be applied to groups and teams which include robots.2025SRStuart Reeves et al.Human-AI (and Robot!) CollaborationCSCW
Bridging Context and Culture: Designing Cross-Cultural Solutions for Type 2 Diabetes Care in NigeriaCulturally sensitive design is crucial for developing inclusive technologies, particularly in resource-constrained settings. However, such approaches often oversimplify culture and face challenges in cross-cultural transferability. This study addresses these issues by exploring how participatory design can be both culturally grounded and adaptable across subcultures within African communities. We conducted 13 distributed design workshops with 19 participants, including people with Type 2 Diabetes (T2D), caregivers, and pharmacists, from diverse ethnic groups in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. These workshops informed the design of a mobile health prototype featuring interactive flows in Pidgin English, collaborative care tools, peer support groups, and a calorie prediction feature. The prototype was evaluated by 30 participants through think-aloud sessions and interviews. Findings highlight that while some features aligned with local cultural norms, others were less effective across sociocultural boundaries, even within the same city. We offer insights and methodological guidance for developing digital health tools that are locally relevant and regionally adaptable.2025TATim Arueyingho et al.Cognitive Impairment & Neurodiversity (Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia)Developing Countries & HCI for Development (HCI4D)DIS
Friction in Processual Ethics: Reconfiguring Ethical Relations in Interdisciplinary ResearchFriction -- disagreement and breakdown -- is an omnipresent aspect of conducting interdisciplinary research yet is rarely presented in formal research reporting. We analyse a performance-led research process where professional dancers with different disabilities explored how to improvise with an industrial robot, with the support of an interdisciplinary team of human-computer and human-robot interaction researchers. We focus on one site of friction in our research process; how to dance -- safely -- with robots? By presenting our research process, we exemplify the different ways in which we encountered this friction and how we reconfigured the research process around it. We contribute five ways in which we arrived at a generative ethical outcome, which may be helpful in productively engaging with friction in interdisciplinary collaboration.2025RGRachael Garrett et al.KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Media Technology and Interaction DesignHuman-Robot Collaboration (HRC)Technology Ethics & Critical HCIDance & Body Movement ComputingCHI
Acceptability, Acceptance and Adoption of Telepresence Robots in Museums: The Museum Professionals' PerspectivesTelepresence robots have the potential to change our experiences in galleries and museums, allowing for a range of hybrid interactions for visitors and museum professionals, improving accessibility, offering activities or information, and providing a range of practical use cases (e.g. the robots augmenting museum exhibits). We present the results of 3 qualitative studies conducted in the UK exploring the acceptability (1 - interviews with museum professionals with no previous exposure to telepresence), acceptance (2 – focus groups for initial exposure to telepresence robots), and adoption (3 – interviews with museum professionals with long-term exposure to robots) of telepresence robots in museums. Our results identified opportunities and barriers focusing on the unique perspective of museum professionals and showed how priorities of museums shift and change according to their exposure to different technologies. We proposed a set of practical guidelines for future telepresence robots in museums, including design implications, potential applications, and integration strategies.2025HCHarriet R Cameron et al.University of Nottingham, Responsible Digital Futures Group, School of Computer Science; University of Nottingham, Mixed Reality Lab, School of Computer ScienceTeleoperation & TelepresenceMuseum & Cultural Heritage DigitizationCHI
Exploring Deaf And Hard of Hearing Peoples’ Perspectives On Tasks In Augmented Reality: Interacting With 3D Objects And Instructional ComprehensionTasks in augmented reality (AR), such as 3D interaction and instructional comprehension, are often designed for users with uniform sensory abilities. Such an approach, however, can overlook the more nuanced needs of Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) users who might have reduced auditory perception. To better understand these challenges, our study utilized the single-player AR game Angry Birds AR as a probe to explore how 11 DHH participants and 15 hearing participants experienced AR interactions. Our findings highlight that DHH users prefer interaction based on context, effective haptic cues, audio cue substitutes, and clear instructional design. We, therefore, propose the following design recommendations to enhance the accessibility of AR for DHH users. This includes customizable UI options, modular feedback systems, and virtual avatars for sign language instructions.2025SLSanzida Mojib Luna et al.Rochester Institute of Technology, Niantic x RIT Geo Games and Media Research LabAR Navigation & Context AwarenessDeaf & Hard-of-Hearing Support (Captions, Sign Language, Vibration)CHI
Exploring Flow in Real-World Knowledge Work Using Discrete cEEGrid SensorsFlow, a state of deep task engagement, is associated with optimal experience and well-being, making its detection a prolific HCI research focus. While physiological sensors show promise for flow detection, most studies are lab-based. Furthermore, brain sensing during natural work remains unexplored due to the intrusive nature of traditional EEG setups. This study addresses this gap by using wearable, around-the-ear EEG sensors to observe flow during natural knowledge work, measuring EEG throughout an entire day. In a semi-controlled field experiment, participants engaged in academic writing or programming, with their natural flow experiences compared to those from a classic lab paradigm. Our results show that natural work tasks elicit more intense flow than artificial tasks, albeit with smaller experience contrasts. EEG results show a well-known quadratic relationship between theta power and flow across tasks, and a novel quadratic relationship between beta asymmetry and flow during complex, real-world tasks.2025MKMichael Thomas Knierim et al.Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute of Information Systems and Marketing (IISM)Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) & NeurofeedbackKnowledge Worker Tools & WorkflowsCHI
Objection Overruled! Lay People can Distinguish Large Language Models from Lawyers, but still Favour Advice from an LLMLarge Language Models (LLMs) are seemingly infiltrating every domain, and the legal context is no exception. In this paper, we present the results of three experiments (total N = 288) that investigated lay people's willingness to act upon, and their ability to discriminate between, LLM- and lawyer-generated legal advice. In Experiment 1, participants judged their willingness to act on legal advice when the source of the advice was either known or unknown. When the advice source was unknown, participants indicated that they were significantly more willing to act on the LLM-generated advice. The result of the source unknown condition was replicated in Experiment 2. Intriguingly, despite participants indicating higher willingness to act on LLM-generated advice in Experiments 1 and 2, participants discriminated between the LLM- and lawyer-generated texts significantly above chance-level in Experiment 3. Lastly, we discuss potential explanations and risks of our findings, limitations and future work.2025ESEike Schneiders et al.University of Nottingham, School of Computer Science; University of Southampton, School of Electronics and Computer ScienceHuman-LLM CollaborationAI-Assisted Decision-Making & AutomationAI Ethics, Fairness & AccountabilityCHI
Queer Joy on Social Media: Exploring the Expression and Facilitation of Queer Joy in Online PlatformsQueer Joy is conceptualised as a form of resistance to oppression by celebrating queerness in the face of adversity. This research aimed to centre queer joy and understand how it is expressed and may be facilitated in online spaces. To do this we conducted a survey with 100 UK participants who indicated they identified as LGBTQ+ on the online recruitment platform Prolific. We asked a series of open and closed questions in an online survey to investigate 1) what queer joy looks like on social media 2) how queer joy content is engaged with on social media 3) which platforms are perceived to facilitate queer joy and 4) how queer people protect their privacy online. The results suggested that to facilitate queer joy online, platforms should allow flexible self expression and community engagement, while allowing for granular control over privacy and the audience such content is shown to.2025MSMadeleine Steeds et al.University College Dublin, School of Information and Communication StudiesSocial Platform Design & User BehaviorGender & Race Issues in HCILGBTQ+ Community Technology DesignCHI
Work Hard, Play Harder: Intense Games Enable Recovery from High Mental Workload TasksPlaying games has been shown to be an effective method of post-work recovery. Previous research has shown that gameplay with high cognitive involvement is effective for recovery. This finding conflicts with models of mental workload (MWL), which suggest that people feel best when cycling between high and low MWL. To unpack the relationship between recovery and mental workload, we designed a lab experiment where 40 participants experienced different combinations of high and low MWL while undertaking both work tasks and recovery gameplay, and we collected both self-report and physiological (fNIRS) data. Results showed that high and low MWL games created different impacts on recovery, depending on the MWL of the prior work task. While fNIRS measurements of MWL varied as expected during work tasks, experience of MWL when playing games was not evident in the prefrontal cortex. We conclude by discussing the relationship between mental workload and theories of recovery.2025LZLinqi Zhao et al.University of Nottingham, School of Computer ScienceGame UX & Player BehaviorSerious & Functional GamesCHI
Savouring Slow Gifts: Reflection from the Field Study of Hybrid GiftingDespite the prevalence of digital gifting, designing meaningful and emotionally engaging digital gifts remains a challenge. One promising approach is Hybrid gifting, which combines digital and physical elements to improve the perceived value of gifts and provide opportunities for interpersonalisation. However, there is limited understanding of how hybridity shapes the dynamics of gifting in everyday contexts. To explore this, we developed a connected coffee machine prototype as a technology probe to study how givers personalise hybrid gifts and how recipients experience them. A study with seven pairs in intimate relationships revealed key insights: hybridity fosters slow, deliberate engagement; supports personalisation aligned with daily routines; grants recipients autonomy in receiving gifts; and reveals tensions between giver anxiety and recipient enjoyment. We discuss design implications for hybrid gifting systems that encourage recipients to savour digital gifts through slow, reflective interactions.2025HKHyosun Kwon et al.Kookmin University, Department of Industrial DesignParticipatory DesignFood Culture & Food InteractionCHI
In the Moment of Glitch: Engaging with Misalignments in Ethical PracticeGlitches -- moments when technologies do not work as desired -- will become increasingly common as industrially-designed robots move into complex contexts. Taking glitches to be potential sites of critical ethical reflection, we examine a glitch that occurred in the context of a collaborative research project where professional dancers with different disabilities improvised with a robotic arm. Through a first-person account, we analyse how the dancer, the robot, and the rest of the research team enacted ethics in the moment of glitch. Through this analysis, we discovered a deep and implicit ethical misalignment wherein our enactments of ethics in response to the glitch did not align with the values of the project. This prompted a critical re-engagement with our research process through which we forged a dialogue between different ethical perspectives that acted as an invitation to bring us back into ethical alignment with the project's values.2025RGRachael Garrett et al.KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Media Technology and Interaction DesignTechnology Ethics & Critical HCIParticipatory DesignDance & Body Movement ComputingCHI
How Personal Value Orientations Influence on Behaviors in Digital Citizen ScienceWhile much research has examined motivations for contributing to citizen science projects, few studies have considered the role of personal values in directing citizen scientists' interactions and contribution patterns. We investigated whether personal values systematically influence the behaviors of individuals who use the Zooniverse platform to select and contribute to citizen science projects. In this paper, we present the results of a research study where we launched a large-scale survey (N = 2,605) to capture personal values using Schwartz's Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ-21). We also extracted system log data from participant interactions on Zooniverse. Our results align with previous research suggesting intrinsic type motivators and values tend to drive specific modes of interaction, e.g., exploring projects in different disciplines. We also see that interaction in social spaces, e.g., discussion boards, is driven by values with a personal focus (e.g., self-enhancement) and social focus. Given these results, we provide several suggestions for managing these and similar projects.2024EJEunmi (Ellie) Jeong et al.Session 1d: Values and Practices in Crowdsourcing and Citizen ScienceCSCW
The Purr-suit of Happiness: A Tale of Three Kittens. Robots, Humans, Cats, and AIThis paper showcases Cat Royale, an exploration of the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on animal happiness situated at the intersection of Art, Computer Science, and Animal Welfare. We argue for the inclusion of non-human actors when designing autonomous systems, as animals increasingly interact with them. In this endeavour, we emphasise multidisciplinarity when designing trustworthy autonomous system. To design, implement, and deploy such systems, diverse voices must be heard. Finally, by highlighting parallels between Cat Royale’s animal-robot interactions and human-AI interactions, this project invites reflections on the trustworthiness, risks, and the price we might pay for AI.2024ESEike Schneiders et al.Social Robot InteractionHuman-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)HRI
Machine Learning Processes As Sources of Ambiguity: Insights from AI ArtOngoing efforts to turn Machine Learning (ML) into a design material have encountered limited success. This paper examines the burgeoning area of AI art to understand how artists incorporate ML in their creative work. Drawing upon related HCI theories, we investigate how artists create ambiguity by analyzing nine AI artworks that use computer vision and image synthesis. Our analysis shows that, in addition to the established types of ambiguity, artists worked closely with the ML process (dataset curation, model training, and application) and developed various techniques to evoke the ambiguity of processes. Our finding indicates that the current conceptualization of ML as a design material needs to reframe the ML process as design elements, instead of technical details. Finally, this paper offers reflections on commonly held assumptions in HCI about ML uncertainty, dependability, and explainability, and advocates to supplement the artifact-centered design perspective of ML with a process-centered one.2024CSChristian Sivertsen et al.IT University of CopenhagenCreative Coding & Computational ArtComputational Methods in HCICHI
SnapInflatables: Designing Inflatables with Snap-through Instability for Responsive InteractionSnap-through instability, like the rapid closure of the Venus flytrap, is gaining attention in robotics and HCI. It offers rapid shape reconfiguration, self-sensing, actuation, and enhanced haptic feedback. However, conventional snap-through structures face limitations in fabrication efficiency, scale, and tunability. We introduce SnapInflatables, enabling safe, multi-scale interaction with adjustable sensitivity and force reactions, utilizing the snap-through instability of inflatables. We designed six types of heat-sealing structures enabling versatile snap-through passive motion of inflatables with diverse reaction and trigger directions. A block structure enables ultra-sensitive states for rapid energy release and force amplification. The motion range is facilitated by geometry parameters, while force feedback properties are tunable through internal pressure settings. Based on experiments, we developed a design tool for creating desired inflatable snap-through shapes and motions, offering previews and inflation simulations. Example applications, including a self-locking medical stretcher, interactive animals, and a bounce button, demonstrate enhanced passive interaction with inflatables.2024YYYue Yang et al.Zhejiang UniversityShape-Changing Interfaces & Soft Robotic MaterialsCHI
Ultrasonic Mid-Air Haptics on the Face: Effects of Lateral Modulation Frequency and Amplitude on Users’ ResponsesUltrasonic mid-air haptics (UMH) has emerged as a promising technology for facial haptic applications, offering the advantage of contactless and high-resolution feedback. Despite this, previous studies have fallen short in thoroughly investigating individuals’ responses to UMH on the face. To bridge this gap, this study compares UMH feedback on various facial sites using the lateral modulation (LM) method. This method allows us to explore the impact of two LM parameters -frequency and amplitude - on both perceptual (intensity) and emotional (valence and arousal) responses. With 24 participants, positive relationships between LM amplitude and perceived intensity and arousal were observed, and the effect of LM frequency varied across facial sites. These findings not only contribute to the development of design guidelines and potential applications for UMH on the face, but also provide insights aimed to enhance the effectiveness and overall user experience in haptic interactions across diverse facial sites.2024RLRuiheng Lan et al.University of NottinghamMid-Air Haptics (Ultrasonic)CHI
Ecological In/Congruence: Becoming Sensitised to Nature in Video Games through Humanistic First-Person ResearchThe ongoing ecological crisis is the current biggest threat for our species. As we attempt to address the situation through policy, interventions, and education, we urgently need to understand how people encounter and relate to nature: As it is, in the world, and portrayed through different media. As an exemplary medium facilitating digital nature, this paper focuses on video games. Using first-person research methods, we report on the first author sensitising themselves to nature as a ubiquitous feature, theme, and actor in video games. They played eight nature-focused games for three months. Through auto-ethnography, close reading and "noticing'' (after Tsing), we make sense of their experiences using the humanistic concept of ecological (in)congruence: We draw out the relational gap and potential meanings between real nature and its virtual equivalent. Based on these insights, we outline two design impulses for how the HCI community might approach nature—within games and beyond.2024VSVelvet Spors et al.Tampere UniversityGame UX & Player BehaviorSustainable HCIHuman-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)CHI
Grand challenges in WaterHCIRecent combinations of interactive technology, humans, and water have resulted in “WaterHCI”. WaterHCI design seeks to complement the many benefits of engagement with the aquatic domain, by offering, for example, augmented reality systems for snorkelers, virtual reality in floatation tanks, underwater musical instruments for artists, robotic systems for divers, and wearables for swimmers. We conducted a workshop in which WaterHCI experts articulated the field’s grand challenges, aiming to contribute towards a systematic WaterHCI research agenda and ultimately advance the field.2024FMFlorian Floyd Mueller et al.Monash UniversityDigital Art Installations & Interactive PerformanceDance & Body Movement ComputingCHI
Understanding Entrainment in Human Groups: Optimising Human-Robot Collaboration from Lessons Learned during Human-Human CollaborationSuccessful entrainment during collaboration positively affects trust, willingness to collaborate, and likeability towards collaborators. In this paper, we present a mixed-method study to investigate characteristics of successful entrainment leading to pair and group-based synchronisation. Drawing inspiration from industrial settings, we designed a fast-paced, short-cycle repetitive task. Using motion tracking, we investigated entrainment in both dyadic and triadic task completion. Furthermore, we utilise audio-video recordings and semi-structured interviews to contextualise participants' experiences. This paper contributes to the Human-Computer/Robot Interaction (HCI/HRI) literature using a human-centred approach to identify entrainment characteristics during pair- and group-based collaboration. We present five characteristics related to successful entrainment. These are related to the occurrence of entrainment, leader-follower patterns, interpersonal communication, the importance of the point-of-assembly, and the value of acoustic feedback. Finally, based on our findings, we present three design considerations for future research and design on collaboration with robots.2024ESEike Schneiders et al.University of NottinghamHuman Pose & Activity RecognitionHuman-Robot Collaboration (HRC)CHI
Communication, Collaboration, and Coordination in a Co-located Shared Augmented Reality Game: Perspectives From Deaf and Hard of Hearing PeopleCo-located collaborative shared augmented reality (CS-AR) environments have gained considerable research attention, mainly focusing on design, implementation, accuracy, and usability. Yet, a gap persists in our understanding regarding the accessibility and inclusivity of such environments for diverse user groups, such as deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) people. To investigate this domain, we used Urban Legends, a multiplayer game in a co-located CS-AR setting. We conducted a user study followed by one-on-one interviews with 17 DHH participants. Our findings revealed the usage of multimodal communication (verbal and non-verbal) before and during the game, impacting the amount of collaboration among participants and how their coordination with AR components, their surroundings, and other participants improved throughout the rounds. We utilize our data to propose design enhancements, including onscreen visuals and speech-to-text transcription, centered on participant perspectives and our analysis.2024SLSanzida Mojib Luna et al.Rochester Institute of TechnologySocial & Collaborative VRDeaf & Hard-of-Hearing Support (Captions, Sign Language, Vibration)Accessible GamingCHI