Maternal Machines: Imagining Experiences in Perinatal Care
a one-day in-person workshop at CHI 2025 in Yokohama, Japan. Sunday 27th April 2025
a one-day in-person workshop at CHI 2025 in Yokohama, Japan. Sunday 27th April 2025
CALL FOR PARTICIPATION
please submit before Wednesday 26th March
Our workshop aims to include a broad understanding of caregiving roles. Contributions are open to participants from a diversity of practices across healthcare, AI and ethics, imaginaries, care, soma design or speculative design. We will explore in particular two interrelated themes in the research: non-numerical forms of knowledge and touch.
Submissions can be as short papers or pictorials (ideally 1 to 2 pages plus references) and can include visual examples from the following:
Non-numerical forms of knowledge:
Tools to describe the body, or the body as a measuring tool : This body can be the body of a parent, carer or baby. For example people have used metaphors such as a cricket ball to describe what the belly feels like during a childbirth contraction, or bread dough to describe how it might feel some months after giving birth. Examples can also include ways in which the body is used as a tool for measuring, for example using a finger to measure the right level of water in a pan with rice; touching the tip of the nose to feel what the cervix feels like or checking bath water temperature with the elbow.
Touch:
Describe an experience of comforting touch: This can be an experience of touch that feels comforting, or touch used to comfort a baby. For example: some people have shared that having hair played with, a repetitive pat at nap time or massaging the earlobes can be soothing. Examples could be from early childhood memories, from a parent or carer's knowledge of 'what works' to put a baby to sleep or to self-relax, or from researchers working in relevant fields.
Demo:
The workshop welcomes hands-on demonstration that are relevant to the above topics. Please tell us more about your demo when you make your Submission.
Important dates:
- Submission deadline: Wednesday 26th March
- Notification: Thursday 3rd April
- Registration: Thursday 10th April
Read more in our workshop proposal.
We will select up to 15 submissions for this workshop, based on quality and diversity of positions, and expected contributions.
At least one author of each accepted submission must attend the workshop and register for both conference and workshop.