HCI and Societal Issues: A Framework for Engagement

In its broadest sense, Human-Computer Interaction includes considerations of the social, political, ethical, and societal implications of computer systems. Concerns such as privacy, accessibility, universal design, and voting usability, have led to active HCI research. The interplay between HCI work and societal issues can be characterized by both the source of the concern and the roles that HCI researchers and practitioners can play in addressing these concerns. We present a categorization of previous work along these dimensions, as a tool for comparing and contrasting various approaches. This model provides suggestions for engagement of issues that are likely to either remain prominent or grow in importance over the next several years. A focus on these issues may lead to opportunities for HCI research to make a contribution towards addressing societal concerns. HCI and societal issues 11/8/2007