Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice
The paper argues that the different dimensions of collaboration - intercultural, interdisciplinar... more The paper argues that the different dimensions of collaboration - intercultural, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary - contribute to mutual understanding and empathy. Their intersection fosters self-reflection and reveals shortcomings, blind spots, and prejudices about other cultures, disciplines, and social groups. The course aimed to overcome technology-driven design practices that tend to (re)produce stereotypes or social exclusions - often unconsciously. To make students aware of such problems, we introduced them to Feminist Science and Technology Studies, which show how dimensions such as age, class, and gender affect socio-technological participation. Moreover, we introduced user-centered and participatory design methods (contextual interviews, scenario-based design, design forecasting) that the teams had to adapt to pandemic conditions to conduct participatory research and propose design scenarios. The empirical course evaluation by the students indicates that the pedago...
The paper argues that the different dimensions of collaboration - intercultural, interdisciplinar... more The paper argues that the different dimensions of collaboration - intercultural, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary - contribute to mutual understanding and empathy. Their intersection fosters self-reflection and reveals shortcomings, blind spots, and prejudices about other cultures, disciplines, and social groups. The course aimed to overcome technology-driven design practices that tend to (re)produce stereotypes or social exclusions - often unconsciously. To make students aware of such problems, we introduced them to Feminist Science and Technology Studies, which show how dimensions such as age, class, and gender affect socio-technological participation. Moreover, we introduced user-centered and participatory design methods (contextual interviews, scenario-based design, design forecasting) that the teams had to adapt to pandemic conditions to conduct participatory research and propose design scenarios. The empirical course evaluation by the students indicates that the pedago...
The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore,... more The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore, potential dissolutions of the socio-technical divide have always been a source of hope from a feminist point of view. The starting point of this contribution are recent trends in the computer science discipline, such as the new interaction paradigm and the concept of 'social machines', which seem to challenge the borderline of the technical as opposed to the social and, thereby, refresh promises for changes in the gender-technology relationship. The paper primarily explores the entanglement between the socio-technical divide and the structural-symbolic gender order on the basis of historical academic discourses in German computer science. Thereby, traditions of critical thinking in the German computer science discipline and related feminist voices are introduced. A reflection of these historical discourses indicates that 'interaction' and 'social machines' are co...
The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore,... more The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore, potential dissolutions of the socio-technical divide have always been a source of hope from a feminist point of view. The starting point of this contribution are recent trends in the computer science discipline, such as the new interaction paradigm and the concept of 'social machines', which seem to challenge the borderline of the technical as opposed to the social and, thereby, refresh promises for changes in the gender-technology relationship. The paper primarily explores the entanglement between the socio-technical divide and the structural-symbolic gender order on the basis of historical academic discourses in German computer science. Thereby, traditions of critical thinking in the German computer science discipline and related feminist voices are introduced. A reflection of these historical discourses indicates that 'interaction' and 'social machines' are contested zones, which call for feminist intervention.
From Gender Analysis to Technology Design Methodologies: Implications for Theory
This paper explores the potentials and limitations of the concept of ‘gender scripts’ for a de-ge... more This paper explores the potentials and limitations of the concept of ‘gender scripts’ for a de-gendering approach to computational artefacts. The de-gendering approach offers alternatives to conventional technology design, which often leads to gender biased artefacts. It is here introduced as a strategy to locate gender studies within the computer science discipline. In proposing methodologies for technology design, which aim to avoid the gendering processes, de-gendering crucially depends on a thorough analysis of how computational artefacts become gendered. It will be shown that the concept of ‘gender scripts’ provides a powerful tool to understand the gendering of certain information technologies. However, the concept fails to explain the gendering processes in Artificial Intelligence as well as on epistemic and ontological levels, for which I suggest an enhanced theoretical framework in drawing on Suchman’s ‘HumanMachine Reconfigurations’ and Barad’s ‘Posthumanist Performativity’.
Was können uns Turing-Tests von Avataren sagen? Performative Aspekte virtueller Verkörperungen im Zeitalter der Technoscience
Seit Multimedia und Kommerzialisierung die Entwicklungen des Internet wesentlich bestimmen, tauch... more Seit Multimedia und Kommerzialisierung die Entwicklungen des Internet wesentlich bestimmen, tauchen vermehrt Avatare auf den Bildschirmen auf. Als virtuelle Charaktere reprasentieren sie die NutzerInnen grafisch-animiert oder „plaudern“ munter mit den Surfenden. In diesem Beitrag mochte ich Avatare als virtuelle Verkorperungen vorstellen und im Kontext der teils miteinander verwobenen Debatten um „Technik“, „Identitat“ und „Geschlecht“ diskutieren. Feministische Forschungen dienen mir dabei ebenso zur Grundlage wie die Auslotungen der Moglichkeit, das Selbst in der textbasierten elektronischen Kommunikation zu gestalten. Die kommunikationsfahigen Auspragungen von Avataren lassen sich direkt in die Traditionen der KI einordnen und verweisen – vermittelt uber den Turing-Test – auf posthumanistische Ansatze. Der Beitrag fragt nach grundlegenden Kategorien, Forschungsannahmen und kulturellen Einschreibungen, die in die Gestaltung dieser technisch-anthropomorphen Artefakte eingehen. Die ...
The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore,... more The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore, potential dissolutions of the socio-technical divide have always been a source of hope from a feminist point of view. The starting point of this contribution are recent trends in the computer science discipline, such as the new interaction paradigm and the concept of ‘social machines’, which seem to challenge the borderline of the technical as opposed to the social and, thereby, refresh promises for changes in the gender-technology relationship. The paper primarily explores the entanglement between the socio-technical divide and the structural-symbolic gender order on the basis of historical academic discourses in German computer science. Thereby, traditions of critical thinking in the German computer science discipline and related feminist voices are introduced. A reflection of these historical discourses indicates that ‘interaction’ and ‘social machines’ are contested zones, which cal...
Das internationale Symposium “Embodied Agents of Life- and Cyberscience. Turbulente Korper und so... more Das internationale Symposium “Embodied Agents of Life- and Cyberscience. Turbulente Korper und soziale Maschinen“ (5. - 7.7.2002) brachte knapp dreisig ForscherInnen aus den Geistes- und Naturwissenschaften zusammen, um Fragen des 'technological embodiment' zu diskutieren. Die konsequent transdisziplinare Herangehensweise und die sozio-materiale Auseinandersetzung mit aktuellen Technologien ermoglichte ein tiefergehendes Verstandnis gegenwartiger Korperformierungen, Maschinenkonzepte und Technofakte jenseits eindimensionaler Technikeuphorie oder -pessimismus. Den Auftakt der Arbeitstagung bildeten zwei Vortrage international renommierter Wissenschaftsforscherinnen. N. Katherine Hayles (USA) untersuchte Umschreibungen des 'Humanen' in den neuesten Entwicklungen der Robotik-Forschung, wahrend Lucy Suchman (GB) in ‚Embodied Agencies at the Interface’ zeigte, dass die Konzepte von Software-Agenten, Wearable Computing und Intelligenten Hausern klassenhierarchische und ges...
Proceedings of the 4th Conference on Gender & IT - GenderIT '18, 2018
This article provides an experience report on an interdisciplinary cooperation between two gender... more This article provides an experience report on an interdisciplinary cooperation between two gender researchers and two automotive engineers at a German technical university. It focuses on the negotiation processes around a joint research proposal, dealing with the question of how to create concepts for a trustworthy human-machine interaction in automated driving systems that satisfy the requirements of different user groups. These systems aim to offer the choice of automobility to groups of users who have so far had rather limited access, or have had reasons to refuse usage. Discussions in the interdisciplinary team are still ongoing. Their substantial shifts and their expected methodological and epistemological effects are analyzed from a feminist science and technology studies (STS) perspective. The general objective of this paper is to provide insights about the contributions and challenges of integrating approaches from gender studies into the field of automotive engineering in order to support interdisciplinary dialogues that foster a socially fair and inclusive digital transformation.
I woke up in a fright, my lungs gasping for air. I heard scuttles my door as the remains of the g... more I woke up in a fright, my lungs gasping for air. I heard scuttles my door as the remains of the glass were being cleaned up. I took a long deep breath as I roll over and turn to face my mirror. My mirror was my grandmothers, she bought it over from America when she married my late grandfather. It has a gold frame that twist and turns its way around the outside and it has intricate carvings of stars, flowers and cherubs.
Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice
The paper argues that the different dimensions of collaboration - intercultural, interdisciplinar... more The paper argues that the different dimensions of collaboration - intercultural, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary - contribute to mutual understanding and empathy. Their intersection fosters self-reflection and reveals shortcomings, blind spots, and prejudices about other cultures, disciplines, and social groups. The course aimed to overcome technology-driven design practices that tend to (re)produce stereotypes or social exclusions - often unconsciously. To make students aware of such problems, we introduced them to Feminist Science and Technology Studies, which show how dimensions such as age, class, and gender affect socio-technological participation. Moreover, we introduced user-centered and participatory design methods (contextual interviews, scenario-based design, design forecasting) that the teams had to adapt to pandemic conditions to conduct participatory research and propose design scenarios. The empirical course evaluation by the students indicates that the pedago...
The paper argues that the different dimensions of collaboration - intercultural, interdisciplinar... more The paper argues that the different dimensions of collaboration - intercultural, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary - contribute to mutual understanding and empathy. Their intersection fosters self-reflection and reveals shortcomings, blind spots, and prejudices about other cultures, disciplines, and social groups. The course aimed to overcome technology-driven design practices that tend to (re)produce stereotypes or social exclusions - often unconsciously. To make students aware of such problems, we introduced them to Feminist Science and Technology Studies, which show how dimensions such as age, class, and gender affect socio-technological participation. Moreover, we introduced user-centered and participatory design methods (contextual interviews, scenario-based design, design forecasting) that the teams had to adapt to pandemic conditions to conduct participatory research and propose design scenarios. The empirical course evaluation by the students indicates that the pedago...
The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore,... more The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore, potential dissolutions of the socio-technical divide have always been a source of hope from a feminist point of view. The starting point of this contribution are recent trends in the computer science discipline, such as the new interaction paradigm and the concept of 'social machines', which seem to challenge the borderline of the technical as opposed to the social and, thereby, refresh promises for changes in the gender-technology relationship. The paper primarily explores the entanglement between the socio-technical divide and the structural-symbolic gender order on the basis of historical academic discourses in German computer science. Thereby, traditions of critical thinking in the German computer science discipline and related feminist voices are introduced. A reflection of these historical discourses indicates that 'interaction' and 'social machines' are co...
The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore,... more The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore, potential dissolutions of the socio-technical divide have always been a source of hope from a feminist point of view. The starting point of this contribution are recent trends in the computer science discipline, such as the new interaction paradigm and the concept of 'social machines', which seem to challenge the borderline of the technical as opposed to the social and, thereby, refresh promises for changes in the gender-technology relationship. The paper primarily explores the entanglement between the socio-technical divide and the structural-symbolic gender order on the basis of historical academic discourses in German computer science. Thereby, traditions of critical thinking in the German computer science discipline and related feminist voices are introduced. A reflection of these historical discourses indicates that 'interaction' and 'social machines' are contested zones, which call for feminist intervention.
From Gender Analysis to Technology Design Methodologies: Implications for Theory
This paper explores the potentials and limitations of the concept of ‘gender scripts’ for a de-ge... more This paper explores the potentials and limitations of the concept of ‘gender scripts’ for a de-gendering approach to computational artefacts. The de-gendering approach offers alternatives to conventional technology design, which often leads to gender biased artefacts. It is here introduced as a strategy to locate gender studies within the computer science discipline. In proposing methodologies for technology design, which aim to avoid the gendering processes, de-gendering crucially depends on a thorough analysis of how computational artefacts become gendered. It will be shown that the concept of ‘gender scripts’ provides a powerful tool to understand the gendering of certain information technologies. However, the concept fails to explain the gendering processes in Artificial Intelligence as well as on epistemic and ontological levels, for which I suggest an enhanced theoretical framework in drawing on Suchman’s ‘HumanMachine Reconfigurations’ and Barad’s ‘Posthumanist Performativity’.
Was können uns Turing-Tests von Avataren sagen? Performative Aspekte virtueller Verkörperungen im Zeitalter der Technoscience
Seit Multimedia und Kommerzialisierung die Entwicklungen des Internet wesentlich bestimmen, tauch... more Seit Multimedia und Kommerzialisierung die Entwicklungen des Internet wesentlich bestimmen, tauchen vermehrt Avatare auf den Bildschirmen auf. Als virtuelle Charaktere reprasentieren sie die NutzerInnen grafisch-animiert oder „plaudern“ munter mit den Surfenden. In diesem Beitrag mochte ich Avatare als virtuelle Verkorperungen vorstellen und im Kontext der teils miteinander verwobenen Debatten um „Technik“, „Identitat“ und „Geschlecht“ diskutieren. Feministische Forschungen dienen mir dabei ebenso zur Grundlage wie die Auslotungen der Moglichkeit, das Selbst in der textbasierten elektronischen Kommunikation zu gestalten. Die kommunikationsfahigen Auspragungen von Avataren lassen sich direkt in die Traditionen der KI einordnen und verweisen – vermittelt uber den Turing-Test – auf posthumanistische Ansatze. Der Beitrag fragt nach grundlegenden Kategorien, Forschungsannahmen und kulturellen Einschreibungen, die in die Gestaltung dieser technisch-anthropomorphen Artefakte eingehen. Die ...
The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore,... more The dichotomy of the technical and the social is strongly gendered in western thought. Therefore, potential dissolutions of the socio-technical divide have always been a source of hope from a feminist point of view. The starting point of this contribution are recent trends in the computer science discipline, such as the new interaction paradigm and the concept of ‘social machines’, which seem to challenge the borderline of the technical as opposed to the social and, thereby, refresh promises for changes in the gender-technology relationship. The paper primarily explores the entanglement between the socio-technical divide and the structural-symbolic gender order on the basis of historical academic discourses in German computer science. Thereby, traditions of critical thinking in the German computer science discipline and related feminist voices are introduced. A reflection of these historical discourses indicates that ‘interaction’ and ‘social machines’ are contested zones, which cal...
Das internationale Symposium “Embodied Agents of Life- and Cyberscience. Turbulente Korper und so... more Das internationale Symposium “Embodied Agents of Life- and Cyberscience. Turbulente Korper und soziale Maschinen“ (5. - 7.7.2002) brachte knapp dreisig ForscherInnen aus den Geistes- und Naturwissenschaften zusammen, um Fragen des 'technological embodiment' zu diskutieren. Die konsequent transdisziplinare Herangehensweise und die sozio-materiale Auseinandersetzung mit aktuellen Technologien ermoglichte ein tiefergehendes Verstandnis gegenwartiger Korperformierungen, Maschinenkonzepte und Technofakte jenseits eindimensionaler Technikeuphorie oder -pessimismus. Den Auftakt der Arbeitstagung bildeten zwei Vortrage international renommierter Wissenschaftsforscherinnen. N. Katherine Hayles (USA) untersuchte Umschreibungen des 'Humanen' in den neuesten Entwicklungen der Robotik-Forschung, wahrend Lucy Suchman (GB) in ‚Embodied Agencies at the Interface’ zeigte, dass die Konzepte von Software-Agenten, Wearable Computing und Intelligenten Hausern klassenhierarchische und ges...
Proceedings of the 4th Conference on Gender & IT - GenderIT '18, 2018
This article provides an experience report on an interdisciplinary cooperation between two gender... more This article provides an experience report on an interdisciplinary cooperation between two gender researchers and two automotive engineers at a German technical university. It focuses on the negotiation processes around a joint research proposal, dealing with the question of how to create concepts for a trustworthy human-machine interaction in automated driving systems that satisfy the requirements of different user groups. These systems aim to offer the choice of automobility to groups of users who have so far had rather limited access, or have had reasons to refuse usage. Discussions in the interdisciplinary team are still ongoing. Their substantial shifts and their expected methodological and epistemological effects are analyzed from a feminist science and technology studies (STS) perspective. The general objective of this paper is to provide insights about the contributions and challenges of integrating approaches from gender studies into the field of automotive engineering in order to support interdisciplinary dialogues that foster a socially fair and inclusive digital transformation.
I woke up in a fright, my lungs gasping for air. I heard scuttles my door as the remains of the g... more I woke up in a fright, my lungs gasping for air. I heard scuttles my door as the remains of the glass were being cleaned up. I took a long deep breath as I roll over and turn to face my mirror. My mirror was my grandmothers, she bought it over from America when she married my late grandfather. It has a gold frame that twist and turns its way around the outside and it has intricate carvings of stars, flowers and cherubs.
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Papers by Corinna Bath