Ethics and Power Dynamics in Playful Technology for Animals

French, F. et al. (2021) Ethics and Power Dynamics in Playful Technology for Animals. In: Mindtrek '21: Academic Mindtrek 2021, Tampere, Finland, 1-3 June 2021, pp. 91-101. ISBN 9781450385145 (doi: 10.1145/3464327.3464366)

Abstract

Technology (digital or otherwise) is a great enabler; it bridges gaps and opens doors and, in the process, alters the reality within which it and its users exist. As technology aimed at non-human animals is becoming commonplace, questions about its efficacy and the ethical implications of its use are becoming ever more pertinent. To explore these issues, we conducted a workshop in which speculative design was used as a means of debating ways through which play, a widespread phenomenon across animal species, can be used as a tool for enabling interspecies communication. We describe the context for this discussion, the methods used, and present a set of speculative designs that illustrate aspects of ethics, equality, and appropriate play in order to provoke further reflection and discussion.

• Item Type: Conference Proceedings
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Hirskyj-Douglas, Dr Ilyena
• Authors: French, F., Hirskyj-Douglas, I., Väätäjä, H., Pons, P., Karl, S., Chisik, Y., Nannoni, E., Zamansky, A., Mangat, M., Paci, P., Kasuga, H., and Vilker, D.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Computing Science
• Journal Name: Academic Mindtrek 2021
• Publisher: ACM
• ISBN: 9781450385145