Projects

Research Overview

Our research focuses on the phenomenon of resilience. Resilience is defined as how people bounce back from threat or vulnerability. We explore how people draw on, re-appropriate, or create technology to generate resilience, or where threat and/or vulnerability is created and perpetuated by the technologies that mediate people’s routine lives.

Our work is fundamentally informed by the perspective that technological systems and their data, design processes, and institutions are deeply colonial. Technologies perpetuate white, cisgender, heteronormative systems of power that have come to mediate people’s everyday experiences in adverse ways. We are working to decolonize (or dismantle) the systems of power and oppression that mediate people’s everyday experiences in our digitally mediated society.

To achieve this goal, our research explores people’s technology-mediated experiences “at the margins”. By the margins, we mean people whose (1) lives are or have been shaped by disruptive life experiences that create threat and vulnerability (e.g. refugees integrating into new sociocultural contexts); and/or people who (2) experience everyday trauma and are perpetually pushed to the boundaries of society based on various intersections of their identities, such as their race, ethnicity, gender, citizenship, body type, health status, and sexual orientation.

Below, we describe some of our current projects with sample publications for each thread (for more information on legacy projects, please visit Dr. Semaan’s personal website):

Everyday Experiences With (and Within) Algorithmic Systems

Today, a range of algorithm-governed sociotechnical systems mediate and influence people’s everyday experiences in the world, such as when they apply for a job, refresh their Instagram or Facebook feed, or go looking for information via Google Search. We encounter these systems daily, and the entanglement of our online social lives with these systems shapes how we perceive the world, how we seek and find employment, and how we engage with our peers. Moreover, these systems are political; they are designed by humans whose values can shape other people's lives, oftentimes negatively. Our participation and engagement with these systems is political as well. For example, algorithmic systems have been found to reinforce societal constructions that privilege those who are white and cisgender (e.g., through who and how people are represented, and who receives a loan). In this series of studies, we seek to explore the ways in which algorithm-governed systems are both shaping and being reshaped by those who encounter them. Current projects include explorations of the experiences of people at the margins with and within various algorithmic systems, such as TikTok.

[Lead Researcher: Ellen Simpson; Other Contributors: Andrew Hamann]

Sample Publications

  • Simpson, E., Hamann, A., Semaan, B. (2022). How to Tame “Your” Algorithm: LGBTQ+ Users’ Domestication of TikTok. To Appear in Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: ACM International Conference on Supporting Groupwork (GROUP 2022).

  • Simpson, E.A, Semaan, B. (2020). For you, or For “You”?: Everyday LGBTQ+ Encounters with TikTok. In Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2020).

Race and Technology

Race and ethnicity form an integral part of human culture and shape the perception of self and others. Yet, sociotechnical systems are not often designed with race and ethnicity in mind, or are designed as political artifacts that continue to reinforce societal power. This can further reinforce systemic issues that plague society. In this series of studies, we explore concepts of race and ethnicity in the context of human-centered computing and design, focusing on how these systems are further marginalizing people’s identities, and how people are using technology to actively reconstruct their identities.

Project 1: Platformed Coloniality

Our initial work explored the uses of Reddit amongst Asian-American and Pacific Islander’s (AAPIs) for identity work. We are presently focused on South Asian countries, e.g., Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan, which have a long history of colonialism. Colonialism is defined as the process through which people’s lives are upended by external forces that force certain ways of living and perspectives on others. The legacy of colonization continues to impact people’s lives and identities. Today, technology comes to embody coloniality--what we dub, platformed coloniality. Current projects include understanding how South Asian communities are using online platforms to make sense of colonized histories and reconstruct their identities, or where online platforms and their data (e.g. governance and moderation) may reinforce and contribute to existing fractures in colonized communities.

[Lead Researcher: Dipto Das; Other Contributors: Carsten Østerlund]

Project 2: Platformed Racism

In this series of studies, we are exploring how the design and use of online platforms and their data contribute to platformed racism. Platformed racism is defined as how sociotechnical systems enable the construction and propagation of racist ideologies. For example, the online platform Reddit has several features that might be contributing to platformed racism, including but not limited to pseudo-anonymity, the karma system, upvoting/downvoting, and governance (e.g. rules and norms, moderation, and user generated content). Our work seeks to understand how online platforms enable racism in an effort to influence and inform the design of anti-racist platforms. Current projects include exploring platformed racism through conversations about crime and criminals online.

[Lead Researcher: Qunfang Wu. Other Contributors: Lulu Williams and Ellen Simpson]

Sample Publications

  • Wu, Q., Williams, L., Simpson, E., Semaan, B. (2022). Conversations About Crime: Re-enforcing and Fighting Against Platformed Racism on Reddit. To Appear in Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2022).

  • Das, D., Østerlund, C., Semaan, B. (2021). “Jol” or “Pani”?: How Does Governance Shape a Platform’s Identity? In Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2021). [Honorable Mention for Best Paper (top 5% of submissions)] [Recognition for Contributions to Diversity and Inclusion]

  • Dosono, B., Semaan, B. (2020). Decolonizing Tactics as Collective Resilience: Identity Work of AAPI Communities on Reddit. In Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2020). [Best Paper Award (top 1% of submissions)]

Governance and harm

In this series of studies, we are exploring governance through automated mechanisms (e.g. algorithms) and community enforcement (e.g. moderation). This work has focused on the challenges of governance for communities at the margins, and/or how systems of governance perpetuate and reinforce marginalization. Our work explores the harm people experience when engaging with and within toxic online communities and how we can better support the labor of moderation. We have previously explored governance across several communities and platforms, such as Asian-American and Pacific Islander communities on Reddit and Bengali communities on Quora. Beyond these studies, we are planning to explore governance and harm in other digital spaces, such as within virtual worlds (e.g. MMORPGs).

[Several contributing researchers]

Sample Publications

  • Wu, Q., Williams, L., Simpson, E., Semaan, B. (2022). Conversations About Crime: Re-enforcing and Fighting Against Platformed Racism on Reddit. To Appear in Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2022).

  • Das, D., Østerlund, C., Semaan, B. (2021). “Jol” or “Pani”?: How Does Governance Shape a Platform’s Identity? To Appear in Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2021). [Honorable Mention for Best Paper (top 5% of submissions)] [Recognition for Contributions to Diversity and Inclusion]

  • Simpson, E.A, Semaan, B. (2020). For you, or For “You”?: Everyday LGBTQ+ Encounters with TikTok. In Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2020).

  • Dosono, B., Semaan, B. (2020). Decolonizing Tactics as Collective Resilience: Identity Work of AAPI Communities on Reddit. In Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2020). [Best Paper Award (top 1% of submissions)]

  • Dosono, B., Semaan, B. (2019). Moderation Practices as Emotional Labor in Sustaining Online Communities: The Case of AAPI Identity Work on Reddit. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2019). Glasgow, Scotland. New York: ACM.

"Making" Justice: Bottom-up design

In this series of studies, we are exploring how and why people at the margins make and create new technologies, or re-appropriate existing technologies like Facebook groups and transformative fandom communities (e.g., Archive of Our Own). We have explored the creation and re-appropriation of technologies amongst several groups at the margins, including Iraqis living through war, United States military veterans transitioning back into civilian life, LGBTQ+ creators, new mothers, and more. By exploring these activities through the lens of “making justice”, we highlight the significance of how, through making and re-appropriation, marginalized communities are re-imaging and resisting the coloniality perpetuated by and through sociotechnical systems and their data by integrating their own values and perspectives.

[Several contributing researchers]

Sample Publications

  • Simpson, E., Hamann, A., Semaan, B. (2022). How to Tame “Your” Algorithm: LGBTQ+ Users’ Domestication of TikTok. To Appear in Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: ACM International Conference on Supporting Groupwork (GROUP 2022).

  • Britton, L., Barkhuus, L., Semaan, B. (2020). ‘Mothers as Candy Wrappers’: Critical Infrastructure Supporting the Transition into Motherhood. In Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: ACM International Conference on Supporting Groupwork (GROUP 2020).

  • Dym. B., Fiesler, C., Brubaker, J., Semaan, B. (2019). ‘Coming Out Okay’: Community Narratives for LGBTQ Identity Recovery Work. In Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2019).

  • Semaan, B. (2019). ‘Routine Infrastructuring’ as ‘Building Everyday Resilience with Technology’: When Disruption Becomes Ordinary. In Proceedings of the ACM (PACM): Human-Computer Interaction: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW 2019).

  • Semaan, B., Mark, G. (2011). Technology-Mediated Social Arrangements to Resolve Breakdowns in Infrastructure During Ongoing Disruption. Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), 18 (4). New York: ACM.

  • Al-Ani, B., Mark, G., Semaan, B. (2010). Blogging in a Region of Violent Conflict: Supporting the Transition to Recovery. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2010). Atlanta, GA, USA. New York: ACM. [Honorable Mention for Best Paper (top 4% of submissions)]

routine resilience with technology

While technology can be harmful, it can also be a positive force. In this series of studies, we are exploring how people at the margins draw on and re-appropriate technological artifacts to build resilience when routinely experiencing vulnerability and threat. This work started by exploring the technology-mediated experiences of Iraqis living through and displaced by war (e.g., refugees). Thanks to generous funding from the National Science Foundation (IIS-1657429), our work has expanded to include other populations at the margins, such as veterans living with PTSD, the visually impaired, new mothers, and more.

[Several contributing researchers]

Sample Publications

  • Akter, T., Dosono, B., Ahmed, T., Kapadia, A., Semaan, B. (2020). “I Am Uncomfortable Sharing What I Can’t See”: Privacy Concerns of the Visually Impaired with Camera Based Assistive Applications. In Proceedings of the ACM USENIX Security Symposium (USENIX 2020).

  • Semaan, B., Britton, L., Dosono, B. (2017). Military Masculinity and the Travails of Transitioning: Disclosure in Social Media. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW 2017). Portland, OR. New York: ACM.

  • Semaan, B., Britton, L., Dosono, B. (2016). Transition Resilience with ICTs: ‘Identity Awareness’ in Veteran Reintegration. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2016). San Jose, CA. New York: ACM.

  • Semaan, B., Mark, G. (2012). ‘Facebooking’ Towards Crisis Recovery and Beyond: Disruption as an Opportunity. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW 2012). Seattle, WA. New York: ACM.

  • Mark, G., Al-Ani, B., Semaan, B. (2009). Resilience Through Technology Adoption: Merging the Old and the New in Iraq. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2009). Boston, MA, USA. New York: ACM.

  • Mark, G., Semaan, B. (2008). Resilience in Collaboration: Technology as a Resource for New Patterns of Action. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW 2008). San Diego, CA, USA. New York: ACM.