i am…

…. John Vines, an interaction designer/design researcher with an interest in:

1) understanding the relationships between the ageing body and the ageing mind, and how these might affect the manner in which digital technologies are experienced;

2) questioning why we should involve people in design processes, and what ‘participation’ might mean in cross-, inter- and trans-disciplinary projects;

3) exploring new methods and mechanisms for designing for collaboration, participation, and novel experiences;

4) developing new systems, services and policies that can both support ageing and well-being yet simultaneously question the concepts and rhetoric surround it.

These are questions that cannot be explored through design activity alone, and therefore it is not surprising that my research often interconnects with work in the fields of gerontology, anthropology, cognitive science and neuroscience. Beyond these ‘obvious’ connections, my research also explores the critical implications of using these sciences to influence design, and subsequently drawing upon literature within the philosophy of mind (and mindfulness), perception, and aesthetics.

I currently work at Culture Lab at Newcastle University, where I am based in the Digital Interaction group. I work on Newcastle University’s node of ‘The Creative Exchange’ AHRC Hub, where I am exploring new mechanisms and methods to support increased engagement between Arts and Humanities academics and the creative industries. Alongside this I am continuing my ongoing research into design theory and methods for: participatory and co-design; developing digital technologies to support and question ageing; inter- and transdisciplinary contexts. This includes exploring what the term ‘participation’ means in the context of digital interaction and HCI, questioning why and how we include people in the design process, and what this might mean in a period where boundaries between disciplines are increasingly blurred.

Before joining Newcastle University I was a Senior Research Assistant at Northumbria University’s School of Design where I was the lead RA on the ‘New Approaches to Banking for the Older Old’ project. On this project I collaborated with computer scientists, financial experts, ethnographers, psychologists, designers and, most importantly, our ‘eighty somethings’, in a participatory approach to design. As a result we developed a number of novel technologies and services along with guidance on future policy to enable the needs and desires of our eighty something collaborators be better supported by the UK banking industry. Prior to this project I completed by PhD with Transtechnology Research at the University of Plymouth. During my doctoral research I spent time working within gerontology, social science, cognitive science and neuroscience to better understand notions of cognition and embodiment as they relate to ageing and the design theory and practice surrounding inclusive design and HCI.

More information about these and other projects can be found here. I also have a list of my recent presentations here, and publications here, and a copy of my academic CV here.

i believe…

… that too much design focuses on the negatives of ageing and not the abundant positives. Along with much user-/people-centred design, experiences and uses of technologies tend to be engineered by the designer – or, at least the designer implies they can be engineered. I believe that design should instead be about opening up spaces for people to reflect upon their own experiences and form rich and engaging experiences in the future. This might not mean usable products or technologies; it might not mean technologies that enter to the background of quotidian activities; it might not mean products and services that actually make life simpler and are immediately understood by ‘users’. In the context of ageing, complexity, effort, time, and the challenge afforded by new technologies are pre-requisites for embodied well-being.

my phd research…

… was about better understanding some of the issues discussed above and the formation of an approach to design I coined ‘senescentechnics’, which helped me shape (and most important, provide evidence for) my above opinions. I performed my research with Transtechnology Research at the University of Plymouth, a rich and diverse group of technology historians, artists, designers, archivists and philosophers. My thesis, and some more information about the project, can be found here.

you can find me…

… usually sitting in Space 2, Culture Lab, Newcastle University. If you’re not fortunate enough to be in Newcastle though, I can be contacted at john[.]c[.]vines[@]gmail[.]com. I also have profiles on academia.edu, and linkedin.