Misuse and Abuse of Interactive Technologies

Aims and Scope of the Workshop

So far research into the user's emotional engagement in computing has
addressed pleasurable affective states such as enjoyment, fun, and
playfulness. Abuse: The darker side of human-computer interaction at
Interact 2005 explicitly addressed negative emotions in computing. It
was concluded in this workshop that interface design and metaphors can
inadvertently rouse more than user dissatisfaction and angry reactions:
they can promote a wide range of 'abusive' behaviors that are directed
not only towards the machine and the interface but also towards other
people (http://www.agentabuse.org/papers.htm).

The purpose of this interdisciplinary workshop is to explore interactive
systems as targets and medium of disinhibited behavior. The goal is to
bring together researchers who have encountered instances of negative
user behaviors in HCI, who might have given some thought to why and how
such behaviors happen, and who have some ideas on how pro-active, agent
based interfaces, should respond. Workshops discussions should provide a
foundation for understanding the misuse and abuse of interactive
technologies and for developing a systematic approach to designing
interfaces that counter negative behaviors.

Relevant Topics

Some of the larger questions and issues we hope to address during the
workshop are the following:

• How does the misuse and abuse of the interface affect the user's
  computing experience?
• How do different interface metaphors (embodied conversational
  characters, windows, desktops) shape a propensity to misuse or abuse the interface?
• What design factors trigger or restrain disinhibited behaviors?
• How does computer-mediated abuse differ from other forms of abuse, e.g., the abuse of people, symbols, flags sacred objects, and personal property? Is it appropriate to use the term abuse in this context?
• Putdowns and other forms of verbal abuse are a part of our everyday social world. It is something we try to diffuse and avoid. How can we develop embodied conversational characters that learn to constrain users who engage in verbal abuse? Do we even need to diffuse it?
• Is the act of verbally abusing a conversational agent anti-social
  behavior or is it the expression of social norms reflecting an
  asymmetric power distribution where the user is the master and the agent the slave?

As the workshop is intended to be interdisciplinary, we hope the
questions and methodologies discussed will be of interest to a broad
audience, including social scientists, psychologists, computer
scientists, and those involved in the game industry. To help inform our
questioning, we also welcome philosophical and critical investigations
into the misuse and abuse of computing artifacts.

Format

Prospective participants should send a 2/4-page position paper
(following the CHI extended Abstract format www.chi2006.org/ceaf.php) to
Antonella.de-angeli@manchester.ac.uk.

Venue

The workshop will take place in Montréal, Québec, Canada. For more information and traveling details visit the main conference web for CHI2006.

Important Dates

• 9 January 2006: submission
• 24 January 2006: Notification of acceptance
• 1 February 2006: CHI 2006 early registration deadline
• 22 April 2006: workshop at CHI 2006

Organizing Committee

Co-Chairs:

• Antonella De Angeli (University of Manchester), UK
• Sheryl Brahnam (Missouri State University), UK
• Peter Wallis (University of Sheffield), UK
• Alan Dix (Lancaster University), UK

• Ruth Aylett (Heriot Watt University, UK)
• Pamela Briggs (Nortumbria University, UK)
• Christoph Bartneck (Eindhoven University of Technology, Holland
• Nadia Bianchi-Berthouze (University of Aizu, JP)
• Claude Draude (Humboldt University Berlin, DE)
• Dirk Heylen (University of Twente, NL)
• Stefan Kopp (University of Bielefeld, DE)
• Stacey Marsella (University of Southern California, USA)
• Roger Moore (Universiy of Sheffield, UK)
• Catherine Pelachaud (Universite de Paris 8, FR)
• Daniela Petrelli (University of Sheffield, UK)
• Oliviero Stock (IRST, IT)
• Alistair Sutcliffe (University of Manchester, UK)
• Yorick Wilks (University of Sheffield, UK)
• Sean Zdenek (Texas Tech University, USA)

Contact Information

For information, expressions of interest and/or submission contact

Antonella De Angeli
Centre for Human-Computer Interaction Design
School of Informatics, the University of Manchester, Manchester
M60 1QD
United Kingdom
Antonella.de-angeli@manchester.ac.uk