COMPUTING JOURNEYS Service Design For Accessibility

Tomáš Zeman

COMPUTING JOURNEYS:SERVICE DESIGN FOR ACCESSIBILITY

MFA Thesisby

Tomáš Zeman

Submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirement for the degree of Master of Fine Arts, this thesis is approved and is acceptable in quality and form.

COMPUTING JOURNEYS Service Design For Accessibility

Tomáš Zeman

Master of Fine Arts in Design Thesis

California College of the Arts

May 2011

Contents

Thesis Abstract Thesis Statement

Methodology Statement of Research

Research Films Introduction

Homelessness: A Visible and Invisible ProblemThe Problem with Some Things

Designed for Poor People Exploring a Relatively Untapped Market

Case Study: The Tenderloin Technology Lab

Observation: The Drop-In Specialist Insight: Client Journeys

Needs Assessment At The TTL Interview Techniques

The AVB: Automated Video BoothQualitative Data

New Possibilities for The Tenderloin Technology Lab Ecosystem

Class Picks A Printed Information System

Key Findings For The Tenderloin Technology Lab

Video Transcription Search Conclusion

Acknowledgements Bibliography

8911141517

18

2022

25262728303235

363941

4245474850

10

Thesis Abstract As a volunteer designer at a nonprofit community technology educa-tion program, I have designed new feedback and communication tools that, when distributed through accessible and adaptable organizations, can help communicate opportunity. The privileged cultural assumption is that everything and everybody is online, but for those who are not, living offline is increasingly difficult. Designers are often challenged with how to engage participants to give feedback beyond familial, social, or financial incentives. Through new feedback tools, I have found that stakeholders engage in design process when they feel special and when they can see immediate value in the experience. Clients at the Tenderloin Technology Lab (some of whom have singular and compound disabilities) cannot follow the same progression of classes. My interventions help communicate indi-vidual curriculums, which provide many possibilities and levels of engagement. In my thesis I pose the question, How might we design the communication of appropriate journeys through a community technology program to deliver and access services more effectively? My work specifically explores the feedback and course selection experiences of technology education and it introduces new engage-ment incentives for stakeholders.

11

Thesis Statement My thesis puts service design to work for non-profits working with low-income clients. How can we help non-profits improve the services they provide to disadvantaged clients? In the case study of the Tenderloin Technology Lab, client journeys through a service are difficult to generalize. When communication is shared across the entirety of an organization’s ecosystem, clients are able to decide their own journeys. My work specifically explores the course selection experiences of technology education and introduces new engagement incentives for stakeholders.

12

Visual inspiration for The Automatic Video Booth

13

Methodology My primary interest in design is in the application of design process to help-ing people do things, a relatively new field in the US called service design. Service design is more general than some design disciplines but also more integrated in so far as it borrows practices from and requires collaboration with design specialists from these other disciplines. My ultimate deliverable is an improvement in the mul-titude of touch points people have with a service. These can be as intangible as an improvement in the way in which an employee performs a process (a workflow), or an individual client’s experience with a service (a journey framework) or as tangible as an artifact, for example, a course catalog made from a Microsoft Word template I designed. These are three examples of my work this year. I am one of many designers who subscribes to a human-centered design process. While this has become a fashionable claim (why wouldn’t a designer say, “Yeah, we can do that too!”) I have found that there are varying levels of engagement in which designers follow the human-centered design process from inspiration to evidencing. Some begin by interviewing respondents, some with prototype testing, and others with prototype refinement. Unless we define what human centered de-sign process means, (i.e. where it begins and ends and how strict we are in following it) the process begins to lose its meaning. Let me explain where human-centered design begins and ends for me. I begin projects with a beginner’s mind, a Zen term that I have learned from our MFA design research process. My design process starts with the humility to recognize that the designer has something to learn from the people whose lives I am hoping to affect. It continues with the observation and discovery of unique needs, behaviors and motivations, which lead to design opportunities. Whenever possible, I strive for co-creation with stakeholders (the people, organizations or groups that have a direct or indirect stake in an organization) but I realize that the designer still plays a vital role. In my work at the Tenderloin Technol-ogy lab, I have found a reluctance from many stakeholders (who include: staff, vol-unteers, and clients) to fully engage in the design process. They are understandably busy. Design is a foreign concept for most people. They don’t work with designers, nor do they have a budget to employ them, or a budget to support their materials and artifacts. My interventions are partly solving for the problems of an organization and their stakeholders, but also for the difficulties I encounter when defining my own process. I embrace iterative methodologies used in service design, product design, and strategic communication design. When they are unsuccessful, I make an adjust-

14

ment. My process always begins with qualitative design research and visual inspira-tion. I believe that we should Design for Accessibility, which differs from Design for Disability in that it is asks us not to look beyond specific limitations, and acknowl-edges that design cannot generalize, or predict what challenges people might have. I often think of my design work through the lenses of the visual and theoret-ical fields that I have learned on my long journey to graduate school. I try to employ the same appreciation for suspense and uncertainty that I learned as a screenwriter: what will make someone turn that page, or even open it first? When making re-search films, I think about the audience, the characters and the mood as I did when I worked in set design. When creating services, I consider the possibilities to engage people through narrative and effects in much the same way as when I worked in set design. When considering the legacy of a problem or the rationale for a strategy, I return to the analytical thinking I have learned in my studies of art history. All of these fields correlate as processes that strive to result in effective, appropriate, and engaging communication with an audience. Design, like film is a medium for com-munication.

15

A screening of my film “Because of You” at the St. Anthony Foundation Free Dining Room

16

Statment of Research

Good design requires thorough research. I found the viewpoints of other people (through the primary research techniques of observation and direct interviews) can validate and inspire the thinking of the designer. Whereas, in other applied arts, such as narrative filmmaking, the evidencing of a concept occurs in the final stage, the qualitative data derived from design research provides a proof of concept all the way through the process. Design researchers often distinguish themselves from market re-searchers, but in a sense, design research also acts as the marketing and the validation of ideas.

17

People Are More Interesting than Pigeons(Super 8 | 4:49)

Tenderloin residents are often willing to talk, but reluctant to be filmed. One partici-pant engaged with my film by expressing herself on camera with just her hands.

Tenderloin National Forest(HD | 5:00)

Community members at this small intersti-tial urban space participate for a variety of reasons. For many, this colorful garden in a treeless neighborhood symbolizes hope.

Because of You(HD | (3:45)

St. Anthony’s foundation provides 1,000 people daily with food, clothing, drug and alcohol help, technology access, and medi-cal care to clients, but what needs does it serve for volunteers?

Research Films

Part of my research, process, and exploration was recorded in short films. The following are three examples of this work.

18

A campsite adjacent to CCA on Hooper Street in San Francisco.

Introduction

“We thought of life by analogy with a journey, with a pilgrimage, which had a serious pur-pose at the end. And the thing was to get to that end. Success, or whatever it is, or maybe heaven after you’re dead. But we missed the point the whole way along.”1-Alan Watts

In San Francisco, people enjoy buying locally and eating locally and I am Introduction

Introduction

19

Introduction

“We thought of life by analogy with a pilgrim-age, which had a serious purpose at the end. And the thing was to get to that end. Success, or whatever it is, or maybe heaven after you’re dead. But we missed the point the whole way along.”1 —Alan Watts

In San Francisco, people enjoy buying locally and eating locally and I am interested in joining this movement by designing locally. The region has so many resources, but for disadvantaged people, there are fewer options. For the roughly 6,514 people living here at a given time and counted as being homeless1-- a situation described as the highest density of homelessness in the US2, life can be difficult. I began my thesis journey, with two questions: Who is designing for this group?, and What specific needs do they have?” Ettore Sottsass, once said: “To me, design...is a way of discussing life.”3 To me, life is a way of discussing design. By collaborating with a specific demographic, community and organization, I have been inspired to design interventions that I hope will further the discussion of the role of design.

1 Watts, Alan. Learning the Human Game, Original Live Recordings on the Tao of Philosophy. Sounds True, Incorpo-rated, 2004. CD.2 San Francisco Human Services Agency with Applied Survey Research, “2009 San Francisco Homeless Count and Survey.” PDF. Web. 17 April 2011.3 Hiesinger, Kathryn B. and George H. Marcus, eds. Design Since 1945. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1983: 3.

20

Homelessness, A Visible and Invisible Problem San Francisco is one of the wealthiest cities in the US with a median fam-ily income of $70,770. In its Tenderloin district, the median family income drops to approximately $25,471.4 This income disparity results in a lack of technological resources and a digital literacy challenge for people trying to advance in a city where most career opportunities require some degree of computer proficiency. One problem that exists in homeless public policy is the difficulty in count-ing a population that is by definition socially estranged. San Francisco conducts an annual homeless count, part of a nationwide attempt to enumerate homeless popu-lations. Beyond the problems that homeless people may be having, the homeless count struggles to define the term homeless. The city partly relies on data from San Francisco soup kitchens that feed the homeless, but to receive a free meal there one only needs to be hungry, and this occurs for the housed as well as the homeless. The Tenderloin soup kitchens, which according to the St. Anthony Foundation are serving an increasing number of meals this year, mostly serve those who live in single room occupancy units, which often have no kitchen access (a common situation in the Tenderloin). Further complicating the picture, the city does not always count the less visible, those living in makeshift shelters, vehicles or even “couch surfers”, people in the practice of moving from one couch to another.5 The city also does not count the homeless it cannot find, many of whom are believed to be teenagers hiding from their families or the law. Some of these people consider themselves “homeless” and others do not. It is a situation that could be as temporary as one night or last for a lifetime. It is a generalized, usually pejorative term we use to group a population that is difficult not only to count, but to see and to understand.

4 “Tenderloin Neighborhood in San Francisco, California (CA), 94102, 94103, 94109 Subdivision Profile.” Stats about All US Cities. Web. 16 Apr. 2011.5 San Francisco Human Services Agency with Applied Survey Research, “2009 San Francisco Homeless Count and Survey.” PDF. Web. 17 April 2011.

21

A colorful van parked on Alameda Street in San Francisco. If there are any people who might be living inside it, they might not be included in San Francisco’s homeless count.

22

The Problem with Some Things Designed for Poor People Traditionally, the design field has served clients with ample resources. Understandably, most designers have accepted taking work from clients who can afford to pay. The relatively new practice of design for social innovation involves the application of design process to under served populations. In recent years, designers, who are trained to think empathetically, divergently and visually, have begun to apply their skills to complex social problems. Providing low-cost technology resources to homeless and low-income populations is representative of this movement. The problem with some products designed for the homeless like livable shopping carts and rollable tents, is that they institutionalize homelessness. They may unintentionally stigmatize challenges by keeping people comfortable at a cer-tain economic level. Peter Samuelson, the philanthropist and developer behind the EDAR (Everybody Deserves a Roof) rollable tent, describes his solution as “better than a cardboard box,”6 but this is too easy of a metric for success. An apartment or a house is better than a box, not only for its normative nature, but because it has the potential to reintroduce homeless back into social and familial networks. With homelessness often comes isolation, which the EDAR unfortunately does not ad-dress. As has often been the case in design, the solution may actually sustain the problem.

6 Groves, By Martha. “Upgrading from a Cardboard Box for the Homeless - Latimes.com.” Los Angeles Times - California, National and World News - Latimes.com. Web. 23 Sept. 2010. <http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-edar10-2008dec10,0,5253031.story?page=1>

23

The EDAR rollable tent

24

Exploring a Relatively Untapped Market Early in my thesis research, I explored how the general public might react to panhandling, a frequent aspect of homelessness. Darius Kayhan, the Homeless Pol-icy Director of San Francisco has described aggressive panhandling as one of the his primary concerns, and Gavin Newsom, the former Mayor of San Francisco explains, “The reason people are panhandling is because there is a market for panhandling,”7 If there is a market, I wondered, how can design serve that market? Panhandling can be dangerous for both parties because it involves the exchange of cash in a public space. It offers little accountability for donors after a donation is made and it is difficult to save that money if it is easier to buy something at a store than deposit it in a bank. To be respectful of panhandlers, I hired an actor to help me learn how the public might react to safer donation methods. I chose to focus my primary design research more on learning from well-meaning donors than

7 Vega, Cecilia, and Heather Knight. “S.F. Parking Meters Retooled to Aid Homeless.” SFGate. 10 Dec. 2010. Web. 14 Apr. 2011

A passerby reacts to an actor, Brian Nikonow who played a panhandler in a series of design research probes

25

on interviewing panhandlers themselves. I wanted to see if text message donation could help legitimize panhandlers soliciting donations. Building off of the success that US text message donation had after the 2010 Haiti earthquake, I made three simple signs for the actor to use to solicit donations: a slice of pizza, five dollars towards housing to be administered by a caseworker, and finally just a connection on a social network. I wanted to see how far people would go to help panhandlers and how technology could help bridge socioeconomic differences. I made a short film to document the response I received from a series of design research probes (physical devices built to test ideas with the public). What I found was that people were willing to donate to panhandlers by way of text message. Would more people donate to panhandlers if a text messaging system for them were put into place? Would this service entice more people to start panhandling? What would be the qualifications for becoming a text-message dona-tion-capable panhandler be? There are many questions still to answer, but I agree with the conclusion of Phillipe Bourgois and Jeff Schonberg, anthropologists who spent twelve years studying homeless populations in San Francisco. Whether one agrees or disagrees with subsidizing low-income and homeless populations, there is an undeniable societal cost of not responding,8 Homeless living is not expensive for the individual, but it does have a cost to society. In one example, Malcolm Gladwell describes the intensive care costs of a Denver man that was costing that city over $1 million a year.9 While I found that my initial research study on panhandling was successful in addressing human needs and indicating new opportunities for technol-ogy in the market place, I realized that I would need help to develop my work and I wanted to find an opportunity where I could work with a community partner.

8 Bourgois, Philippe I., and Jeff Schonberg. Righteous Dopefiend. Berkeley: University of California, 2009. Print.9 Gladwell, Malcolm. “Part Two: Million Dollar Murray.” What the Dog Saw: and Other Adventure Stories. Camber-well, Vic.: Allen Lane, 2009. Print.

26

Case Study: The Tenderloin Technology Lab My arrival at The Tenderloin Technology Lab (TTL), was not a continua-tion of my panhandling research, but it was a redirection into learning about another aspect of homeless. I needed to put my interest in social innovation in context. The TTL’s parent organization, the St. Anthony Foundation, has had 60 years of experi-ence providing services to San Francisco’s low-income population. Rather than cre-ate an entirely new service myself, I hoped to work with them to improve the newest of their offerings. Engaging the Tenderloin Technology Lab as a collaborator in the

The Tenderloin Techology Lab in San Francisco

27

Case Study: The Tenderloin Technology Lab My arrival at The Tenderloin Technology Lab (TTL), was not a continua-tion of my panhandling research, but it was a redirection into learning about another aspect of homeless. I needed to put my interest in social innovation in context. The TTL’s parent organization, the St. Anthony Foundation, has had 60 years of experi-ence providing services to San Francisco’s low-income population. Rather than cre-ate an entirely new service myself, I hoped to work with them to improve the newest of their offerings. Engaging the Tenderloin Technology Lab as a collaborator in the design process, gave me real constraints and has inspired and challenged my design work to come to life. The Tenderloin Technology Lab (TTL) is a nonprofit community technology lab. It is the Tenderloin’s only technology center, a place where approximately 1,000 homeless and low-income neighborhood residents come annually to access basic technology resources: telephone, computer, internet and printer access, along with software and hardware training classes. For additional basic needs, the TTL refers clients to social work services, legal services, and job placement programs. To apply what Rob Tow describes as “The Laurel Maneuver”10 (a way in which a designer can work on two different strategies simultaneously), I was able to keep my wish of creating opportunities for the San Francisco homeless population while adding the needs of The Tenderloin Technology Lab. First, I needed to help them find their grand strategy.

10 Tau, Rob. “Strategy, Tactics and Heuristics for Research.: In Design Research: Methods and Perspectives. Cam-bridge, MA: MIT, 2003. Print.

28

Observation: The Drop-In Specialist “Jimmy” arrived late to Facebook Class, a two hour introduction to the social networking program that the lab offers. A nearby volunteer asked a seated student to move farther down the row and I moved the empty chair to the side so that Jimmy could have unobstructed access to a desktop computer. He uses a power chair, so we were immediately aware of his physical disability. Facebook class is offered to clients as a way to learn online social network-ing to communicate with friends and family. The website, which is easy for most people to learn is less intuitive for clients who are just getting online. Clients are provided with a fictitious friend, “Jack Tenderloin,” if they don’t have anyone they know on Facebook. For some, the class is a tutorial on how Facebook might help them in the future, for others it was a was a way to connect with people, some who they haven’t heard from in years. During the class, I watched as students followed the instructor’s steps in how to set up one’s online profile. Jimmy raised his hand and asked for my help. He had a question about how a Facebook gaming application worked. He was play-ing Farmville, a popular Facebook application that allows people to become virtual farmers. The rest of the class were not playing Farmville. They were learning how to register for Facebook and create a password that would be secure. Privacy was a priority for several students in the class who were concerned about privacy issues. I tried to come to the class with an open mind about this experience, but I was curious as to where the TTL was leading clients like Jimmy. I learned afterwards, that Jimmy has taken the same Facebook class multiple times. As a fan of the class, he has been setting a positive example for other students, but he was also not taking more challenging classes. By signing up for classes that he had already taken before, he had found a way to skip the lab’s waiting time for computer use, called Drop-in time. He was one of the people the lab was concerned about. He was what the lab calls a “Drop-in Specialist.”

29

Insight: Client Journeys

Several weeks after meeting Jimmy and observing the Facebook class, I stumbled upon a newspaper article which featured the TTL and more of Jimmy’s story. I learned that Jimmy had been in prison for 10 years and lives in a nearby halfway house. He learned how to use the internet at the lab. He now uses the lab to communicate with friends and family members across the country and routinely emails his doctor. He is one of many clients at the TTL who have compound disabili-ties. Like homelessness, disabilities at the lab are both visible and invisible. Clients come to the lab with a wide range of unique needs, that exceed technological needs. The question is not whether they understand how to use a computer, it is a question of whether we, designers and stakeholders understand what their needs are.

The Tenderloin Technology Lab staff and me

30

Needs Assessment At The TTL When I made my first visit to the TTL in October, I found that many of the preconceptions that I had about what a service that serves low-income and home-less residents of the Tenderloin were false. The lab is situated in a large, new LEED building. Staff members were extremely friendly. It is not unusual to see a white orchid sitting on a desk. They have polished concrete floors and it looks more like a high-end organic grocery store than what I had imagined would be more like a crowded, antiquated, and well-worn California DMV. The manager of the TTL, Karl Robillard described a problem that they were having. Two years, after opening the lab their most popular class remains Basic Computer Skills, a three week course that explains the functions of a computer mouse, teaches typing skills and introduces Microsoft Word. The lab offers interme-diate to advanced classes, all the way through A+ Certification (an accreditation for computer support technicians), but people were not enrolling in them and he wasn’t sure why. He asked me, “How can we get clients to take more advanced classes?” I spent several weeks observing classes. I noticed the complex challenges that clients face, which include physical, mental, textual, linguistic, financial, digital disabilities. I asked Ryan, the TTL’s System Administrator (who like the rest of the staff, is also an instructor) to explain the levels of technological skill that students have. He drew a three level pyramid with the smallest amount of students having an advanced level, the largest amount having a beginner level and intermediate stu-dents were in between. “Was this before or after taking classes at the TTL?” I asked. He replied, “It’s both.” Although Karl and others proudly shared individual success stories-- like the client who “studied his brains out and made it to A+ certification” -- in the two years since the TTL has been open, the majority of clients who entered as a new computer-user or at a basic level have not progressed beyond that. Apart from that one extremely studious client, in the TTL’s two years of operations, it has been rare for beginning computing clients to progress to the advanced level.

31

Top: By leading staff members through design process, it became clear that the TTL had many interconnected needs, and clients were not following the standard journey framework that the organization had intended Bottom: I narrowed the scope of potential projects by focusing on the TTL’s immediate priorites and by choosing appropriate projects for my thesis interests and constraints

AWARENESS INFORMATION ENGAGEMENTACHIEVEMENT/

REFERRALSPLACEMENT/FOLLOW UP

BrandingAdvertisingStreet presenceIncoming internal referralsExternal ReferalsOutreach Home Visits

Defining Feedback Loops & System

Personalizing therecommendationprocess

Offline Information System

Scheduling work flowsCourse DescriptionsOrientation Class

ExperienceGraphic IdentitySystemizing Course

Offerings

Define RolesTeaching Material

PedagogyTraining Volunteers and

StaffUpgrading Hardware,

Software & Physical Comfort

Gender Diversity

Recognizing SuccessJob Skills TrainingReferrals to Internal

programs Referrals to Internal

programs

Alumni networkAlumni mentoringOutreach home visits

OPPORTUNITIESFOR SERVICE NEEDS

Career support for volunteers and staff

* THESIS INTERVENTIONS

32

Interview Techniques

Before beginning a series of interviews, I wanted to film the classroom expe-rience. Clients did not want to be filmed and I felt uncomfortable filming people who wanted to remain private. I resolved this by filming only their hands which allowed me to show what they were doing, but retain their anonymity. By limiting my class-room observational filming to the hands, I was able to film more clients. I realized that the hands like any photograph only tell part of the story, but they can also be highly expressive and remind us of the human hand that still remains in technology education. After visiting classes and engaging both front line staff (those who interact with clients regularly) and back of the house staff (those who work indirectly with clients) in observation and conversation, I interviewed three clients. I wanted to learn how the TTL’s services were helping or hindering them and what could be learned from clients directly. I found three gregarious participants who allowed me to inter-view them on camera. One of the learnings in my solicitation of respondents was verbalized by Darrel, the TTL’s front desk Program Assistant, “Homeless people do not like to be on camera,” he explained. I saw this as a challenge and not as a barrier to my work. Of the three respondents I filmed, all of them mentioned directly or alluded to the difficulties that they have had in their lives before coming to the TTL. While I assumed I might hear this before taping the interview, I learned that this kind of sharing of pain and frustration had a healing quality. As a designer who uses film to share viewpoints, I see the potential for empowerment and learning that comes with sharing one’s opinions and stories with others through moving image. Sitting in front of the camera and communicating one’s experience does not require the ability to write, or even to speak a common language. However, in my three recorded interviews, I felt as though the respondents were not yet sharing themselves. There was no way for me to avoid manipulating the communication. I was choosing the questions to ask and I was the one selecting which clips were valuable to show to the organization, to reduce the hours of footage to a desired length. I longed for a medium, in which stakeholders could communicate directly with each other, without me. I thought about the distribution of my videos. I was planning to show these just in my thesis work, but I saw the potential for a wider audience throughout the TTL’s ecosystem. I felt like the respondents were talking to me directly and not to the organization or the stakeholders. I love traditional design research interviews, but I wanted the respondents to love them too. What if participants could direct their own interview?

33

Interview Techniques Before I began my interviews, I wanted to film the classroom experience. Clients did not want to be filmed and I felt uncomfortable filming people who wanted to remain private. I resolved this by filming only their hands which allowed me to show what they were doing, but retain their anonymity. By limiting my classroom observational filming to the hands, I was able to film more clients. I realized that the hands like any photograph only tell part of the story, but they can also be highly expressive and remind us of the human hand that remains in technology education. After visiting classes and engaging both front line staff (those who inter-act with clients regularly) and back of the house staff (those who work indirectly with clients) in observation and conversation, I interviewed three clients. I wanted to learn how the TTL’s services were helping or hindering them and what could be learned from clients directly. I found three gregarious participants who allowed me to interview them on camera. One of the learnings in my solicitation of respondents was verbalized by Darrel, the TTL’s front desk Program Assistant, “Homeless people do not like to be on camera,” he explained. I saw this as a challenge and not as a a barrier to my work. Of the three respondents I filmed, all of them mentioned directly or alluded to the difficulties that they have had in their lives before coming to the TTL. While I assumed I might hear this before taping the interview, I learned that this kind of shar-ing of pain and frustration had a healing quality. As a designer who uses film to share viewpoints, I see the potential for empowerment and learning for everyone that comes with sharing one’s opinions and stories with others through moving image. Sitting in front of the camera and communicating one’s experience does not require the ability to write, or even to speak a common language. In my three recorded interviews, I felt as though the respondents were not yet sharing themselves. There was no way for me to avoid manipulating the communication. I was choosing the questions to ask and I was the one selecting which clips were valuable to show to the organization, to reduce the hours of footage to a desired length. I longed for a medium, in which stakeholders could communicate directly with each other, without me. I thought about the distribution of my videos. I was planning to show these just in my thesis work, but I saw the potential for a wider audience throughout the TTL’s ecosystem. I felt like the respondents were talking to me directly and not to the organization or the stakeholders. I find traditional ethnographic video interviews lim-iting, as the interviewer directs respondents. What if participants could direct their own interview?

The Automated Video Booth

34

The AVB: Automated Video Booth I collaborated with interaction designer, Konina Biswas to design the Auto-mated Video Booth, a video recording device that can be used by anyone, regardless of how well they understand technology. I envisioned an interview experience that would allow stakeholders to ask 5 questions and would allow anyone to respond with a three minute recorded video. This limitation was intentional. We found through prototyping, that the more concise the interviews were, the more desirable they would be for audiences to watch and for future participants to record. Originally, I thought that the booth could simply be a place for people share their point of view, much like the confessionals of reality TV shows, but I knew that we would want to keep the conversation constructive and focused on education, an area of improvement that we had chosen. In its month-long installation at the TTL, the booth played pre-recorded questions to visitors: What are you learning? What’s one thing that we’re doing well and one thing that we could improve? Is the TTL helping you find a job? What do you want to learn next in a TTL class? These were no longer questions from my scripted interview guide, but they had become pre-recorded video clips of questions that played repeatedly in the booth. Konina incorporated the questions into a computer program that gave participants only one direction: push the button to answer the next question. The booth was made out unpainted wood, rather than a cheaper prototyp-ing alternative like foam core. By choosing the less readily disposable material that took more time to put together, I wanted visitors to see the integrity of how it was made and enjoy the experience of a natural material, which even has a nice smell. I was concerned about the potential for abuse, both physically to the structure and also to the content of the videos. My goal with the AVB was to create an experience that people would treat well, because they could see how carefully it was made. I aimed to engage stakeholders in the interview process beyond the social, familial and financial incentives that Design Researchers have been accustomed to using. I hoped that participants would enjoy the interview experience as much as I do and could see the utility of the interview as a method for gathering insight. I researched film and video projection techniques for inspiration and was struck by the beauty of the Magic Lantern, an image projector developed in the seventeenth century primarily for magicians but which continued to be used widely though the first half of the twentieth century by which time it combined motion pictures with the curtains of theater to create a live performance.11 11 Eds. Crangle, Richard, Heard, Mervyn, and van Dooren, Ine. “Devices and Desires.” Realms of Light. London, England: The Magic Lantern Society, 2005. 11-45. Print.

35

Top: Sketch of the AVB Bottom: Staff and Volunteers chose their own questions to record

36

The tradition of combining cinema and theater continues today at the Czech theater, Laterna Magika in Prague. Designers such as the late Josef Svoboda have inspired me with their ability to combine cinema, theater and the feeling of magic to create an engaging experience. From my studies of cinematography, I understood light as the way in which we perceive a space, so I incorporated light not just from above to light people’s faces on camera, but from the back as well to light up the background, which ex-plans the setting to the the video viewing audience. I realized that this would make the entire booth glow and perhaps the glow alone, could entice people to participate. As we iterated through several versions of the AVB, we continued to sim-plify the experience. Participants sat in a chair looking at a projected screen which shows an interviewer asking a question. We began with a mouse control and moved to a single red button because we wanted this design to be accessible for those who might be digitally disabled. We refined the speed of the program and the instructions for the participants. The only directive we needed to give visitors-- which included clients, volunteers and staff members-- was to press the button to answer the next question.

The Magic Lantern in Nüremberg by Ernest Plank, between 1875 and 1914

37

The Interviews from the Automated Video Booth at the TTL

Qualitative Data

In total, we recorded a dozen interviews (three traditional and nine auto-mated) at the TTL. We found that client interests included art, science, technology, and business. The participants ranged from young adults to senior citizens, and their technology goals ranged from “learning how to move around the computer”to learn-ing the programming language, HTML5. We identified several results and needed a way to curate them. We put the videos on YouTube to allow other stakeholders to be able to access, comment on, and respond to the data directly. With the unlimited nature of online video sharing, we saw the potential to aggregate and search through vast amounts of automatically recorded videos on focused subjects.

38

New Possibilities for The Tenderloin Technology Lab Ecosystem

Applying feedback models from cybernetics, the science of communication and control systems (which can be both living and non-living), can help explain exist-ing communication systems of feedback at the TTL and can help visualize opportuni-ties for improvement. Cybernetic feedback models explain how causal systems work. Like the second-order feedback model developed by Paul Pangaro and Dubberly Design Office: “The Role of Wolves in Regulating the Yellowstone Ecosystem,12 the TTL has two causal systems nested within each other. At the TTL, there is a system of communication existing within a system of needs. Currently, each member of the organization’s hierarchy relies on its neighboring member. For example, volunteers teach and inspire clients. Clients provide a challenge and vocation to volunteers (many of whom are unemployed). Clients and donors (at the opposite ends of the feedback system) have little to no direct interaction with one another, because clients mainly communicate with volunteers. This is a healthy, yet fragile example of second-order feedback, but can it be improved? What would happen to this ecosystem if the Automatic Video Booth were installed permanently? I visualized a feedback model to explain how feedback might help the TTL connect each individual stakeholder with one another. With the addi-tion of an intervention like the AVB, feedback could exist more like a peer-to-peer system of organization. Peer-to-peer systems have no hierarchical structure, but are incredibly stable (the Internet, the Apache Indian tribe and Alcoholics Anonymous are all examples).13 When feedback is permitted to be communicated freely through-out the TTL’s ecosystem, it could create a more stable ecosystem of communication.

12 Pangaro, Paul. Intro to Cybernetics for Systems Design. New York: SVA MFA Interaction Design Program, Jan. 2010. Lecture PDF: 68 13 Brafman, Ori, and Rod A. Beckstrom. The Starfish and the Spider: the Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations. New York: Portfolio, 2006. Print.

39

Second-order Feedback: Community Technology Lab ExampleThe Role of Feedback in Regulating The Tenderloin Technology Lab Services

funding

provide

regulatesthe budgetfor

donors

st. anthony foundation& sf network ministries

board of directors

management

frontlinestaff

volunteers

tenderlointechnologylab

internalservices clients

regulates the amount of technology and training available to

externalservices

teach learn fromand learn from

providea challengeand vocation to

providelabor savingsand teachingassistance

providereferrals for

providereferrals for

provides servicesto fulfill need

provideoutreachopportunity for

communicateneeds and opportunities

shortagesand successelicit

provideclientfeedbackto

initiatesservicesand improvesservicequality

decides how toexecute services

teachand inspire

regulatesthe capacity and scope of services

regulates the ability to respondto service needs

regulates the number of volunteers needed and how they are utilized

motivate

BASED ON THE MODEL:Second-order Feedback: Biological Example“The Role of Wolves in Regulating the Yellowstone Ecosystem.”by Paul Pangaro and Dubberly Design Office

Second-order Feedback: Community Technology Lab ExampleThe Role of The Automatic Video Booth in Regulating The Tenderloin Technology Lab Services

funding

donors

st. anthony foundation& sf network ministries

board of directors

management

frontlinestaff

volunteers

tenderlointechnologylab

clients

Automatic Video Booth

Top: How communication feedback loops currently function at the TTL Bottom: How communication feedback loops would function with the Automatic Video Booth

40

Top: Sketch of Class Picks Bottom: Class Picks

41

Class Picks

Class picks is a prototype for course recommendation. It is the direct result of a design brainstorming session that I led. We envisioned an opportunity for back-of-the house staff to have a voice at the front desk. Physically, it is a simple shelf containing representations of classes for clients to choose. Like the analogy of a Staff Picks section of record store, we wanted a new way for clients to select classes that they might not understand classes and empower the staff. This could also be a way for the TTL to promote an under utilized resource and to empower staff to have a voice in the client experience. In our first iteration, I tried repurposing DVD rental cases to represent classes. When my classmates in the studio opened the DVDs to find nothing inside, I realized that this might not be the best, most straight-forward analogy. Instead of DVDs, I next tried menus to represent the classes, as if they were a special offering at a restaurant. What is the Class du jour? It’s Lynda.com class, a live, instructional seminar designed to teach you how to use a website, which has hundreds of online video classes to help you learn software individually. This inter-vention is in English and in Spanish and is lower in height than their current brochure rack, within reach of physically disabled, wheelchair clients.

42

Top: Sketch of the Printed Information System Bottom: Printed Information System, in English and Spanish

43

A Printed Information System

A frustrating part of the TTL experience that I noticed was that the staff referred clients to the website for information. This is common practice for organiza-tions, but the digitally disabled have to be comfortable with using a website, some-thing that beginning computing clients cannot do until they they have started basic computer skills. The TTL had a white 11x17” printed calendar that clients routinely referred to more than the website. I challenged myself to make a condensed version of the calendar, con-strained to a double-sided letter brochure that included the course descriptions, which theirs did not. I imagined a course calendar which would introduce a basic identity (logo), one which was general enough to explain the TTL, but not so specific that it would have to go through the long process of approval by all stakeholders. The identity would not act as a definitive visual marker, but rather a placeholder that would not impede the immediate needs they had for a printed brochure. I conceived of a calendar without the limitation of boxes, the type that have become more and more pervasive with computer scheduling software and difficult to work with as a template. My final deliverable is not a printed brochure, but it is a nicely designed Microsoft Word template, with instructions for printing it double-sided on brightly colored paper that I introduced to be used with the office equipment that they already have. It is available for the first time in English and Spanish. The TTL has vol-unteers and staff who already function as calendar makers, and rather than replace their good work at constantly updating their services based on client needs, I hope to give them additional clarity with my template. In the copy, I thought about its in-tended use. The brochure begins with, “Welcome to The Tenderloin Technology Lab,” because after using the TTL’s services in their first month, it is still my hope that the TTL’s new beginner level computer clients will soon be able to access the website.

44

A client studies Microsoft Word in Basic Computer Skills class

45

Key Findings For the Tenderloin Technology Lab

Not everybody at the TTL is looking for a job, because they might be retired, disabled or they might not share with you what their challenge is.

Clients are entitled to the privacy of not disclosing their story, which makes it difficult to generalize and recognize individual hardships.

The TTL’s clients have different perceptions of time and purpose. Their needs often relate to their ambitions.

Clients can be anyone. They use technology to learn almost anything, but mostly other things than the technology itself. Clients learn computer software and hard-ware to learn about life.

Stakeholders become engaged when they feel special and connect with people on a personal level.

The TTL’s services work when they are adaptable, accessible and express the per-sonality of the organization and the individuality of its stakeholders.

46

Video Transcription Search

47

Video Transcription Search

Excited by the possibilities of the AVB to empower stakeholders to create their own design research videos, I wondered whether they could also choose their favorite insights to inspire my designs. With the AVB, the participant became the filmmaker, the editor and the ethnographer. In the same manner, I felt reluctant to come back to the studio and edit my favorite insights together as inspiration for my designs. I wanted to put the service design emphasis of co-creation to the test and see if there was a way that stakeholders could each find the insights that were most important to them. Video transcription search is a new feature I imagined for YouTube. Building off of the transcription capabilities of the digital editing software, Adobe Premiere and recent media innovations in contextual and annotated video, I envision a day when we can search beyond the titles and tags of videos and search through the transcript itself. One of the exciting possibilities for video transcription search is accessibility. Because voice-to-text transcription and language translation has im-proved so much, I see the possibility of one day communicating with others through video, without the need for knowing another language. For example, at the TTL, one of their clients, Rueben, recorded a video in the booth, but he could not understand enough English to answer the questions. I empathize with the difficulty of not knowing another language. Unfortunately, I was not able to translate for Rueben, but I imagine one day that video will be able to do that for him. For stakeholders, I see Video Transcription Search as a possible tool to browse insights based on search. By searching for the term, “Photoshop,” for instance, a stakeholder could find there were three videos that were recorded that mentioned Photoshop. Like the pre-record feature of the newest video cameras, the video would cue up not at the search result, but at the beginning of the sentence to that search term. If the stakeholder wanted to search more generally, they could search for the term “Learning” and find that 8 of the 9 videos mentioned learning. Video transcription search would him/her to view the videos, not by starting at the beginning of the footage, but by starting at the beginning of the sentence which spoke the most valuable insight to the individual stakeholder.

48

An instructor demonstrates the inner workings of a PC in Tech Hardware, an advanced class.

49

Conclusion Through my thesis journey, which applied service design methodology to nonprofits and low-income clients, I have found that social innovation is useful as a practice beyond the positive implications I hope it will have for clients, staff and volunteers at the Tenderloin Technology Lab. It is rewarding beyond the warm feeling that comes from helping people in need, people who normally would not benefit from design services. To me, social innovation is a means with which designers can learn. By working with people and organizations who have compound challenges, which include not being familiar with design and not being able to afford our servic-es, we open our critique to a larger circle. Along the way I found a healthy tension be-tween what we designers consider to be good design and what the most basic needs are of the clients. Simplifying interventions at the TTL in order to accommodate for unforeseen disabilities worked well functionally, but did not allow for sophisticated design, which can confuse and delay accessibility. Realistically, not all of the Tenderloin Technology Lab’s clients are on the same technological journey, so it is important for instructional staff to help clients make their own journey through the organization. Because it can be hard to recog-nize “invisible” disabilities at the TTL, it is important to design for accessibility, which means not designing for a particular disability that we are able to see, but for the broader possibility that one does not now what disabilities other people might have. As an outcome of this thesis, the TTL no longer gives clients a singular jour-ney map of the course progressions when they walk in the door. Part of my design, is not just the addition of more things, features and technology, but it is in the removal of things that people do not need. The TTL will still prepare clients for their journeys, but they are doing that by a change in service process. Through human interaction, stakeholders will help individuals plan their own journeys.

50

Acknowledgements

Computing Journeys could not exist without the help of many collaborators, advisors and friends. Behind the scenes, there is a wonderful ecosystem of teaching, sharing, learning and support that exists in our graduate design studio and class-rooms at CCA. Thank you to my thesis advisor Maria McVarish for your encourage-ment and guidance throughout this process. Thank you to my thesis faculty: Brenda Laurel, Kristian Simsarian, Jon Sueda, Barry Katz, Wendy Ju, and Mara Holt-Skov who enthusiastically inspired me and challenged me. Thank you to Rachel Strickland for helping me refine my films. The faculty’s diverse perspectives taught me how to re-search, design, produce, write, present and think about this thesis in new and exciting ways. At the Tenderloin Technology Lab, I am grateful to Karl Robillard and Salena Bailey, for taking the leadership in allowing me to design several projects with their team. I appreciate all of the staff, volunteer and client contributions to making this thesis possible. My fellow graduate students have been so supportive and helpful. Special thanks to Konina Biswas, my talented interaction design collaborator on the Au-tomatic Video Booth. My actor, Brian Nikonow, who fearlessly offered his skills for the sake of design research. Thank you to Phil Balatgas, my collaborator on several research projects. His help with graphic design, sound recording and film editing was invaluable. Others who played key roles include my thesis reading group: Phil, Konina, Jason, Nikki, and Corey who shared resources with me and offered critique outside of class. Lastly, Ian Cooley, thank you so much for reviewing my work so thoughtfully.

51

Ann, a volunteer instructor for Basic Computer Skills helped me refine Class Picks.

52

Bibliography

COMMUNICATION DESIGN

Conradi, Jan, Kevin Rau, and Massimo Vignelli. Unimark: Unimark International ; The Design of Business and the Business of Design. Baden: Lars Muller Publ., 2009. Print.

Muller-Brockmann, Josef. Grid Systems in Graphic Design: a Visual Communication Manual for Graphic Designers, Typographers, and Three Dimensional Designers = Raster Systeme Fur Die Visuelle Gestaltung : Ein Handbuch Fur Grafiker, Typografen, Und Ausstellungsgestalter. Niederteufen: Verlag Arthur Niggli, 1981. Print.

Journalism in the Age of Data. Dir. Geoff McGhee. Perf. Amanda Cox, .Fry, Watten-berg, Koblin, Felton, Stamen, Etc. Kottke.org. Jason Kottke & Stanford Datajournalism, 30 Sept. 2010. Web. 06 Oct. 2010. <http://kottke.org/10/09/journalism-in-the-age-of-data>.

Vignelli, Massimo. The Vignelli Canon. New York: Vignelli Associates, Jan. 2009. PDF.

DESIGN INSPIRATION

Eds. Crangle, Richard, Heard, Mervyn, and van Dooren, Ine. “Devices and Desires.” Realms of Light. London, England: The Magic Lantern Society, 2005. 11-45. Print.

Hiesinger, Kathryn B. and George H. Marcus, eds. Design Since 1945. Philadelphia:Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1983. Print.

Suzuki, Shunryu, and Trudy Dixon. Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind. New York: Walker/Weatherhill, 1970.

Watts, Alan. Learning the Human Game, Original Live Recordings on the Tao of Phi-losophy. Sounds True, Incorporated, 2004. CD.

53

DESIGN RESEARCH

Laurel, Brenda. Design Research: Methods and Perspectives. Cambridge, MA: MIT, 2003. Print.

Suri, Jane Fulton. Thoughtless Acts?: Observations on Intuitive Design. San Fran-cisco: Chronicle, 2005. Print.

Weiss, Robert Stuart. Learning from Strangers: the Art and Method of Qualitative Interview Studies. New York: Free, 1994. Print.

DESIGN PROCESS

Bone, Martin, and Kara Johnson. I Miss My Pencil. San Francisco: Chronicle, 2009. Print.

Brown, Tim, and Barry Katz. Change by Design: How Design Thinking Transforms Organizations and Inspires Innovation. [New York]: Harper Business, 2009. Print.

Gates Foundation: Giving A Fortune Away. Dir. CBS News. Perf. Bill and Melinda Gates. 60 Minutes, 03 Oct. 2010. Web. 06 Oct. 2010. <http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6923498n&tag=contentMain;cbsCarousel>.

IDEO. Human Centered Design Toolkit. Palo Alto: IDEO, Sept. 2010. 2nd edition. PDF.

King, Oliver. “Engine Service Design: Service Design: an Organisational Challenge” Presentation to the Service Design Network. Proc. of Service Design Network Confer-ence, Microsoft New England Research and Development Center, Cambridge, MA. 2010.

ETHNOGRAPHY

Bourgois, Philippe I., and Jeff Schonberg. Righteous Dopefiend. Berkeley: University of California, 2009. Print.

Ethnographic Films for Research. YouTube. Monde Moderne. Web. 08 Sept. 2010. <http://www.youtube.com/user/MondeModerne>.

54

Portable Portrait: THELMA GEHRY. Dir. Rachel Strickland. Vimeo. Web. 08 Sept. 2010. <http://vimeo.com/9370678>.

LOW-INCOME PUBLIC POLICY

Alioto, Angela. San Francisco Plan To Abolish Homelessness. The San Francisco Ten Year Planning Council, 2004. PDF.

Beaumont, Peter, Mark Townsend, and Toby Helm. “Britain Looks at Portugal’s Suc-cess Story over Decriminalizing Personal Drug Use | Politics | Guardian.co.uk.” The Guardian | Guardian.co.uk. 5 Sept. 2010. Web. 23 Sept. 2010. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/sep/05/portugal-decriminalising-personal-drug-use>.

Fagan, Kevin. “Plans to Keep Track of Homeless People across the Region. “The SFGate. 28 Oct. 2005. Web. 13 Apr. 2011. <http://articles.sfgate.com/2005-10-28/bay-area/17394967_1_end-homelessness-homeless-people-regional-plan>.

Matier, Phillip, and Andrew Ross. “Homeless Problem Lingers as S.F. Spends Mil-lions.” SFGate. 01 Oct. 2010. Web. 07 Oct. 2010. <http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/09/27/BA8E1FJCR6.DTL>.

“Online NewsHour: San Francisco Program Combats Homelessness with Innovation -- April 8, 2005.” PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. Web. 27 Apr. 2011. <http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/economy/jan-june05/homeless_4-8.html>.

“Tenderloin Neighborhood in San Francisco, California (CA), 94102, 94103, 94109 Subdivision Profile.” Stats about All US Cities. Web. 16 Apr. 2011. <http://www.city-data.com/neighborhood/Tenderloin-San-Francisco-CA.html>.

Vega, Cecilia, and Heather Knight. “S.F. Parking Meters Retooled to Aid Homeless.” SFGate. 10 Dec. 2010. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. <http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/12/MNR110L13S.DTL>.

LOW-INCOME RECOVERY SERVICES AND SOCIAL INNOVATION

Brown, Tim, and Jocelyn Wyatt. “Design Thinking For Social Innovation.”Stanford Social Innovation Review. Web. <http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/design_thinking_for_social_innovation/>.

55

Charnley, Pem. “Homeless Candid Camera: A Reporter Decided to Give Beggars Credit Cards in Order to Analyze Their Honesty. How Condescending.” Edito-rial. Comment Is Free. Guardian, 2 Sept. 2010. Web. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/sep/02/homeless-candid-camera-prepaid-credit-cards>.

San Francisco Human Services Agency with Applied Survey Research, “2009 San Francisco Homeless Count and Survey.” PDF. Web. 17 April 2011.http://www.sfgov3.org/ftp/uploadedfiles/lhcb/homeless_count/SF2009Homeless-CountFINALReport.pdf

Gladwell, Malcolm. “Part Two: Million Dollar Murray.” What the Dog Saw: and Other Adventure Stories. Camberwell, Vic.: Allen Lane, 2009. Print.

Groves, By Martha. “Upgrading from a Cardboard Box for the Homeless - Lat-imes.com.” Los Angeles Times - California, National and World News - Latimes.com. Web. 23 Sept. 2010. <http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-edar10-2008dec10,0,5253031.story?page=1>

Rose, Steve. “The Grow-your-own Homeless Hostel.” Guardian. 1 Sept. 2009. Web. 10 Sept. 2010. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2009/sep/01/spring-gardens-homeless-hostel>

Shame of the City: A Special Report on the Homeless. SF Gate. Web. <http://www.sfgate.com/homeless/>.

SERVICE DESIGN, SYSTEMS DESIGN AND ORGANIZATION DESIGN

Brafman, Ori, and Rod A. Beckstrom. The Starfish and the Spider: the Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations. New York: Portfolio, 2006. Print.

Pangaro, Paul. Intro to Cybernetics for Systems Design. New York: SVA MFA Interac-tion Design Program, Jan. 2010. Lecture. PDF.

McCreary, Lew. “Kaiser Permanente’s Innovation on the Front Lines - Harvard Busi-ness Review.” Harvard Business Review Case Studies, Articles, Books. Web. 23 Sept. 2010. <http://hbr.org/2010/09/kaiser-permanentes-innovation-on-the-front-lines/ar/1>.