1. The increased presence of technology
in our lives and the changing nature of
designed culture
Julia Moisand Egéa
4 OCT 2010

2. Increased presence of technology in our lives. Applying it in the US and in developing countries. 2
Contents
1. How our designed culture is changing
with the increased presence of technology?
2. Technology, education and choice.
3. Applying technology in the US:
privacy and identity management.
4. Applying technology in the developing countries:
ethics, profits and values.
5. Conclusion

3. Increased presence of technology in our lives. Applying it in the US and in developing countries. 3
How our designed culture is changing with
the increased presence of technology?
We can be overwhelmed exposed assisted
tracked

4. Increased presence of technology in our lives. Applying it in the US and in developing countries. 4
Technology, education and choice
We need to build scaffolds to distinguish what is important, true and good: a mental system that filters and
prioritizes information leads to informed choices.
priority sad true relevant

5. Increased presence of technology in our lives. Applying it in the US and in developing countries. 5
Building a «crafted» approach to education which links experiences in real life and knowledge in order to help you
finding your path and making your own choices (Dewey).

6. Increased presence of technology in our lives. Applying it in the US and in developing countries. 6
Applying technology in the US:
privacy and identity management
Privacy today has dynamic boundaries, the «selective control of access to the
self» (Dourish).
identity boundaries
temporality boundaries disclosure boundaries

7. Role of ethnography in design. Designing with vs designing for people. 7
Privacy is a privilege (Boyd)

8. Role of ethnography in design. Designing with vs designing for people. 8
Digital identity is the management of multiple voices and tones (Evans).
What is my online branding strategy? Can I have several voices?

9. Role of ethnography in design. Designing with vs designing for people. 9
Applying technology in the developing
ethics, profits and values
Ignoring or engaging the poor ? Spreading western values? Understanding the local circumstances before design?
Ending the economic isolation of poor population: good for business and give the access and choice (Prahalad).
Huge market- good for business Give the choice to people by engaging them-
good for people

10. Role of ethnography in design. Designing with vs designing for people. 10
Trusting the market and the rising hubs in Africa by understanding the customer there (Hersman).
Following the positive deviance methods, by relying on local expertise to uncover local solutions (Wyatt). It is part
of the design process to understand the places where people live differently, think differently and consume
differently.

11. Role of ethnography in design. Designing with vs designing for people. 11
Conclusion: technology as a path to focal
activities
Increased presence of technology in the US rises questions about privacy and identity management.
Ethical questions are concentrated on an individual scale.
There are people who are more vulnerable than others like:
- people who don’t have much access to education and who don’t build scaffolds;
- people who are very sensitive, especially young people, unsecure and looking for their own path (Tyler Clementi killed
himself after an intimate encounter was broadcast);
- people from older generations, who don’t understand the consequences of their decisions or their «acceptance», like
private settings for example.
Increased presence of technology in the developing countries rises questions about profits and exportations of western
values. Ethical questions are concentrated on an larger scale (politics, consumption, values) and are very complex.
About the role of technology in our lives, I generally agree with Evans who says that technology can assist in the
performance of focal activities as long as it does not become the focus itself.