Inside the belly of the beast: the challenges and successes of a reformist participatory agenda

  • Authors:
  • Ellen Balka

  • Affiliations:
  • Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B.C. Canada

  • Venue:
  • Proceedings of the ninth conference on Participatory design: Expanding boundaries in design - Volume 1
  • Year:
  • 2006

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Abstract

Shapiro [38] recently argued that participatory design practitioners should consider pursuing a reformist agenda through engagement with the procurement and development of systems in the public sector. This paper considers the challenges, contradictions and possible arenas for success in the context of a reformist participatory design agenda [38], by reflecting on recent work undertaken from a stance similar to that advocated by Shapiro [38] in a public sector agency. The intention of the paper is to stimulate and extend discussion about arenas in which the political goals that characterized participatory design in its early days can be pursued, and extend discussions about the role of politics in contemporary participatory design [14].