Claire Brophy’s research while affiliated with Queensland University of Technology and other places

Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) is an increasingly prominent topic in CSCW. From telepresence systems through field robots for extreme missions to social robots in homes, HRC is becoming a recurring theme across a broad range of CSCW research. Based on the growing interest, we explore the coupling of the field of CSCW and research on robotics at this critical time. This paper presents a primary and secondary literature review of CSCW proceedings and venues for robotics research. We identified 29 CSCW papers that contribute to the body of HRC research and analyse the foundations on which these papers rely. Then, we identified 138 papers published in robotics outlets that either (1) cite one or more CSCW papers, or (2) use the term CSCW. We discuss how CSCW is currently contributing to HRC research through five research topics: Sociomateriality, teamwork, awareness, embodiment, and communication. The paper contributes by offering three key future pathways for expanding this area of research, outlining questions and gaps that have yet to be explored for (1) expanding the application domains and diversifying robot types for HRC, (2) methodological implications for HRC, and (3) learning from human collaboration.

The move into residential aged care is a difficult transition for many people. The place may be called an aged-care or nursing "home", but for many residents it does not feel like a home at all. This paper explores issues experienced by older people who are trying to make themselves at home in aged care. The authors present two studies examining residents' perceptions of the aged-care environment. The findings suggest that residents experience significant challenges. Residents' identities are influenced by their ability to keep treasured objects and personalise their rooms, and the design and accessibility of communal areas influences residents' willingness to spend time in them. For many residents, their private spaces are more appealing than communal areas, resulting in extended time alone in their rooms. However, personal items have to be discarded due to space issues and/or private rooms can become cluttered with personal items and become difficult to use. The authors suggest that much can be done to improve the design of aged-care homes and enable residents to feel more at home. Of particular importance is providing ways for residents to personalise their living space and make it feel homelike.

Purpose The paper discusses the use of co-design for staff professional learning within higher education. It suggests that three distinct approaches to professional learning can be characterised as help-yourself platforms/services, drive-by workshops and co-design workshops. It makes pragmatic suggestions for where co-design might be used and heuristics for its successful use, based upon the authors' collective experiences. Design/methodology/approach This practitioner paper presents a case-study of co-design in a university context. Staff from across disciplinary boundaries were brought together to co-design novel learning experiences for students for a non-traditional context. Findings Findings from a case study are used to highlight the strengths of a co-design approach, as understood through the lenses of networked learning and self-determination theory. It juxtaposes co-design for staff learning with other approaches and finds it to be valuable and underutilised. Research limitations/implications The research discusses a single case study involving two workshops with a sample size of 112 participants. It is included as an example of co-design for professional learning in higher education. Originality/value Co-design for professional learning in higher education is poorly understood and presently underutilised. This paper addresses this gap by presenting an example of co-design for professional learning in higher education and theorising its significance.

There is little denying that our complex global system is in the midst of unprecedented change—from bushfires to social unrest, to healthcare systems on the verge of collapse. The sustainability of our system relies on carefully balanced interactions between several layers—culture, governance, infrastructure, commerce, fashion/art, and of course, nature (Brand, Journal of Design and Science, 2018). When an imbalance exists between the layers, results can be catastrophic (Brand 2018). These are wicked problems, and complex societal challenges that are almost impossible to solve (Buchanan, 1992; Rittel & Webber, 1973), cited in Skaburskis, Planning Theory & Practice 9:277–280, 2008). Working to understand them though, and envision preferable futures (Candy, The futures of everyday life: Politics and the design of experiential scenarios. University of Hawai’i at Manoa, 2010) is what design does best. And pushing the practice to be more socially responsible is something design writers and critics have been imploring designers to do for decades (Buchanan, 1992; Buchanan, 1998; Margolin, 1998; Mau, 2020). But while the complexity of global problems—and the opportunities for design—continues to increase, challenges remain in transforming the practice.

Slips, trips, and falls (STFs) occur frequently at train stations and on trains, and result in passengers injuries. STFs underlying causes focussing on passengers with reduced mobility (PRM) were investigated. Mixed methods combining observation and retrospective interviews were used. Thirty-seven participants between 24 and 87 years of age completed the protocol. They navigated between three selected stations while wearing the Tobii eye tracker. In retrospective interviews, they were asked to explain their actions in selected video segments. The research identified the dominant risky locations and risk-taking behaviour in risky locations. For example: (i) risky locations were the vicinity of obstacles, (ii) risky behaviour was not looking at the gap between the platform and train. The dominant risky locations and behaviours could be considered as underlying causes of slips, trips, and falls for PRMs. They can be applied during planning and design of rail infrastructure to predict and mitigate STFs. Practitioner summary: A significant number of slips, trips, and falls (STFs) occurs at railway stations, and often result in personal injury. This research identified the dominant risky locations and behaviour as underlying causes of STFs for people with reduced mobility (PRMs). The recommendations presented could be implemented to mitigate such risk.

Dementia is a long-term condition that impacts on various aspects of a person’s functioning. The person-centred care approach has been shown to be integral to quality of life however the communication challenges facing people with dementia makes understanding the needs of the person difficult. Our research shows that this is a big issue for people with dementia and their families and carers and can be compounded as they navigate different elements of the care. This paper explores the role of design in the context of creating tools to support communication with people living with dementia and personalise their care, with a particular focus on the use of co-design methods for drawing out and sharing people’s life experiences and stories. Two case studies are presented which describe how designers and design educators in Australia and Canada have approached this topic.

Public transport systems are vital services in urban environments. The design of these complex socio-technical systems is continuously evolving to accommodate larger populations, and their adaptation is essential in supporting the successful and sustainable development of cities and regions. An essential part of this adaptation includes working to increase passenger safety and to minimise their risk of injury. With this focus, key objectives of the current study were to identify the causes of slip, trip and fall (STF) incidents attributable to the rail user and to train and station characteristics. An investigation of historical STF records of 1,247 train and station incidents in two Australian jurisdictions was conducted. Various contributing factors to STF events were identified, including locations such as stairs, ramps, escalators, the train’s entry and exit step, doorway areas, and passenger running or rushing. A mixed-method field study was then conducted at three train stations and on trains. To further investigate the contributing factors, participants (N=40) wore an eye tracker as they navigated the stations and trains. The research illustrates that their continuous search for information, and a disconnect between the information needed and the information provided, might be a cause of passenger distraction and an increase in their risky behaviour. Therefore, we suggest that improvements in information design to reduce the high visual workload for passengers might also reduce the incidence of STFs

Objectives: This research was intended to provide a greater understanding of the context and needs of aged care seating, specifically:To conduct an audit of typical chairs used in aged care facilities;To collect data about resident and staff experiences and behaviour around chairs in order to gain a deeper understanding of the exact issues that residents and staff have with the chairs they use at aged care facilities;To identify positive and negative issues influencing use of chairs in aged care facilities;To deliver evidence-based recommendations for the design of chairs for aged care facilities. Methods: Methods included a chair dimension audit, interviews with residents, experts and carers and observations of aged care residents getting into chairs, sitting in them and getting out. Results: Results showed that residents, experts and carers all prefer chairs which are above the recommended height for older people so that they will be able to get out of them more easily. Armrests were essential for ease of entry and egress. However, many residents struggled with chairs which were also too deep in the seat pan so that they could not easily touch the floor or sit comfortably and were forced to slump. Most residents used cushions and pillows to relieve discomfort where possible. Conclusion: The implications of these issues for chair design and selection are discussed. Variable height chairs, a range of chairs of different heights in each space and footrests could all address the height problem. Chair designers need to address the seat depth problem by reducing depth in most aged care specific chairs, even when they are higher. Armrests must be provided but could be made easier to grip. Addressing these issues would increase access to comfortable yet easy-to-use chairs for a wider range of the aged care population.