Over the past two years I have dedicated my work to the study of forms of technological engagement. During the course of researching users and non-users of Facebook here at Carleton, I discovered new forms of engagement that are relatively understud
...MoreOver the past two years I have dedicated my work to the study of forms of technological engagement. During the course of researching users and non-users of Facebook here at Carleton, I discovered new forms of engagement that are relatively understudied. Some individuals, for example, could be described as 'proxy-users'-those who indirectly 'use' Facebook through a mediator; others may be described as 'apparent' or 'minimal' users-those who make periodic or spasmodic use of Facebook and sometimes shift between being a user (having an active account) and a non-user (having a deleted, but recoverable account).
Working with the notion of users and non-users has lead me into a new area of interest: 'The perpetual possession of devices' and 'device distancing/disengagement'. What practices have we developed to escape these devices? How does perpetual possession affect our daily lives? Future directions to explore in this area are notions like ‘deceptive use’, ‘device intrusiveness’ and ways in which ‘non-use’ is being incorporated into the design of devices and new technologies (e.g., 'silent mode' on cellphones).
Less
Technology, Knowledge, and Society
