We describe a Research through Design project-Curious Cycles-a collection of objects and interactions which encourage people to be in close contact with their menstruating body. Throughout a full menstrual cycle, five participants used Curious Cycles to look at their bodies in unfamiliar ways and to touch their bodily fluids, specifically, menstrual blood, saliva, and cervical mucus. The act of touching and looking led to the construction of new knowledge about the self and to a nurturing appreciation for the changing body. Yet, participants encountered and reflected upon frictions within themselves, their home, and their social surroundings, which stem from societal stigma and preconceptions about menstruation and bodily fluids. We call for and show how interaction design can engage with technologies that mediate self-touch as a first step towards reconfiguring the way menstruating bodies are treated in society.
Touching and Being in Touch with the Menstruating Body
Nadia Campo Woytuk,M. Søndergaard,Marianela Ciolfi Felice,Madeline Balaam
Published 2020 in International Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
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- Publication year
2020
- Venue
International Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
- Publication date
2020-04-21
- Fields of study
Medicine, Computer Science, Psychology
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Semantic Scholar
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