Participatory activities with users and others in the software lifecycle

Abstract

This tutorial extends conceptions of theory and practice in participatory design, and in participatory activities more generally. Extensions in breadth cover diversity in using participatory techniques in multiple phases of the software development lifecycle, and diversity in practice within two participatory methods. Extensions in depth consider theoretical and heuristic approaches — based in part on anthropology, cultural criticism, feminism, and postmodernism — to working with a mosaic of dissimilar people in terms of mutual value, exchange, and respect. The tutorial’s themes are integrated in a closing discussion of participatory methods in the software Iifecycle.