HCI scholarship is increasingly concerned with the ethi- cal impact of socio-technical systems. Current theoretically- driven approaches that engage with ethics generally pre- scribe only abstract approaches by which designers might consider values in the design process. However, there is little guidance on methods that promote value discovery, which might lead to more specific examples of relevant values in specific design contexts. In this paper, we elaborate a method for value discovery, identifying how values impact the de- signer’s decision making. We demonstrate the use of this method, called Ethicography, in describing value discovery and use throughout the design process. We present analysis of design activity by user experience (UX) design students in two lab protocol conditions, describing specific human val- ues that designers considered for each task, and visualizing the interplay of these values. We identify opportunities for further research, using the Ethicograph method to illustrate value discovery and translation into design solutions.

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SAI SHRUTHI CHIVUKULA,
COLIN M. GRAY, & JASON BRIER
PURDUE UNIVERSITY
Analyzing Value Discovery
in Design Decisions Through Ethicography

2. Exploration of critical/ ethical
aspects in HCI & UX

3. Philosophical
contributions
SITUATIINGOURWORK
CRITICALITY / ETHICAL CONCERNSWe prioritize practitioner-oriented
perspectives on the situational
quality of ethics and values.
Practice
HCI, STS and
UX Design Literature

4. Philosophical
contributions
Methodological
frameworks
Practice
SITUATIINGOURWORK
HCI, STS and
UX Design Literature
In Design literature, methods
often focus on minute-by-minute
decision making
In HCI and STS literature,
methods often focus on value
implementation and importance
CRITICALITY / ETHICAL CONCERNSWe prioritize practitioner-oriented
perspectives on the situational
quality of ethics and values.

5. Philosophical
contributions
Methodological
frameworks
Practice
HCI, STS and
UX Design Literature
SITUATIINGOURWORK
?
Existing methods do not
focus on value discovery
CRITICALITY / ETHICAL CONCERNSWe prioritize practitioner-oriented
perspectives on the situational
quality of ethics and values.
In Design literature, methods
often focus on minute-by-minute
decision making
In HCI and STS literature,
methods often focus on value
implementation and importance

6. Aims
Explore methodological issues relating to
value identification and awareness, building
upon previous value-focused methods.
Describe how designers cpllaboratively
operationalize and interact with values
through specific exemplars
1
2

7. Aims
Explore methodological issues relating to
value identification and awareness, building
upon previous value-focused methods.
Describe how designers collaboratively
operationalize and interact with values
through specific exemplars
1
2

8. Lab Protocol Study
Documenting designers’ discussions

9. LAB PROTOCOL DESIGN
PRESENTATION
SESSION DETAILS
TOTAL: 60 MINS
5mins
45mins
10mins
SOLVING DESIGN TASK
INTRODUCTION
PARTICIPANTS
4 GROUPS OF 3 EACH
DESIGN TASK
REDESIGN DONATION EXPERIENCE
“BY WHATEVER MEANS POSSIBLE”

10. 8 sessions conducted
sessions with design task 1
DATA COLLECTION
4
sessions with design task 24
participants per each session group3
students from UX and Industrial Design24
All sessions video recorded and transcribed

11. TWODESIGNTASKS
LP1: Donations for Charity
maximize conversion rates for a Houston-based charity
"by any means necessary"
LP2: Manipulative E-Commerce
redesign the shopping experience of an online pharmacy
website using language that explicitly asked the
design students to "manipulate or deceive" the end user.

12. TWODESIGNTASKS
LP1: Donations for Charity
maximize conversion rates for a Houston-based charity
"by any means necessary"
LP2: Manipulative E-Commerce
redesign the shopping experience of an online pharmacy
website using language that explicitly asked the
design students to "manipulate or deceive" the end user.

13. DATA ANALYSIS
Method
Transcripts
(Participants, Speech Acts)
Interaction Analysis
Ethicograph
analysis
Ethicography
(A method of value discovery)
Thematic analysis
of speech acts
Description of
Value Awareness
& Discovery

14. ETHICOGRAPHY
Linkography
Visualize idea generation
Link various conversations in design ideation
Represent temporal component of ideation
OUTCOMES

15. How to make linkography
ethically-focused ?

16. ETHICOGRAPHY
Value Orientations
Two themes: Value Codes and Idea Codes
Applies value codes: E/IVC and E/IMI
Attributes idea codes: Problem, Solution,
Rationale or Intended Behavior
FOREGROUND
BACKGROUND
HELP USERPERSUADE USER
EXPLICIT
VALUE CENTERED
(EVC)
IMPLICIT
VALUE CENTERED
(IVC)
EXPLICIT
MANIPULATIVE
(EMI)
IMPLICIT
MANIPULATIVE
(EMI)

17. We applied these themes as
layers over the linkograph to
create an ethicograph
How to make Linkography ethically-focussed?

18. Participants
Value Codes
Idea Codes
Speech Act
Link
A B C
Pe Si IB
ETHICOGRAPHY
Steps
Step 1: Unitize speech acts
1
Step 2: Apply a value code
2
Step 3: Apply an idea code
3
Step 4: Form links
4

19. ETHICOGRAPHY
Ethicograph
Layers
Temporal Dimension
Links

20. Aims
Explore methodological issues relating to
value identification and awareness, building
upon previous value-focused methods.
Describe how designers collaboratively
operationalize and interact with values
through specific exemplars
1
2

21. Participants
Value Codes
Idea Codes
Speech Act
Link
A B C
Pe Si IB
ETHICOGRAPHY
Value Identification
Value Code Layer: Operationalize Values
Idea Code Layer: Identify solutions generated
Links: Relationship between values and ideas

22. IDENTIFIEDVALUES
LP1: Donations for Charity
Trust
Automation
Aesthetics
Right to Information
Security
Flexibility
Optimization
Usability
LP2: Manipulative E-Commerce
Right to Information
Usability
Human Welfare
Ownership

23. VALUES IDENTIFIED
Right to InformationLP1
Right to provide all the
information to the users of the
website to attract donors and
maximize the conversion rate.
Infographics- Progress Bars, Real time
update of their donation
Visual Imagery- Images
User stories before the "Donate" button
SOLUTIONS GENERATED

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71 1 23 45 8 9 67 82 7 9 90 3 4 7 100 1 5 93 7 111 2 5 87 122 3
VALUES IDENTIFIED | EXAMPLE

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71 1 23 45 8 9 67 82 7 9 90 3 4 7 100 1 5 93 7 111 2 5 87 122 3
VALUES IDENTIFIED | EXAMPLE
11510573

26. VALUES IDENTIFIED
Right to InformationLP1
Infographics: Progress Bars,
Real time update of
their donation
Solutions Generated
generally seeing progress
bars, like helps initiate some
kind of action from you...."
"Progress bar can alert the user to
the state of emergency, thereby
guilting users to donate more
money.
Dark Intentions Designer Quotes
Visual Imagery: Images
Images could “toy” or play with
user’s emotions , thereby
encouraging users to donate to
the charity
people really don't want
to spend money, but the thing
is, if you really go through the
path of, you know, emotions,
that would definitely work"
"

27. Discussion

28. Expanding Situated Knowledge of
Pragmatist Ethics-in-Use
This gives insights about methodological expansion for
pragmatist ethics, rather than using ethics and values as
handcuffs or prescriptions.

29. Persuasive Intentions in Ethical Engagement
While these issues should ideally be taken up in design
and UX education, we also propose the need for
additional methods that allow designers to actively
discover and engage with values throughout the design
process.

30. Implications & Future Work
Moving forward.

31. Critical Research
Role Analysis
Quantifying Ethicography
Discourse Analysis

32. THANK YOU
This research was funded in part by National
Science Foundation Grant No. #1657310
SAI SHRUTHI CHIVUKULA
uxp2.com
cshruthi@purdue.edu