Research shows that workers in online labor platforms use various means –such as social media or specialized tools –to circumvent perceived limitations imposed by platforms that negatively impact their work. We call this phenomenon digital circumvention. While digital circumvention is often presented in research as an ad hoc solution, we propose framing it as a case of self-resourcing by workers. This framing allows us to integrate digital circumvention as a platform governance activity alongside other forms of self-resourcing, as well as resourcing and securing exercised by the platform’s owner. We use an empirical case study of the food delivery platform Foodora to map design ideas from workers onto the resulting conceptual model, investigate what types of circumvention are possible to realize, and see whether other types of self-resourcing or resourcing are more effective. Our findings show that only a small subset of the design ideas can be implemented using digital circumvention. Most of the ideas require other forms of self-resourcing such as national regulations, or resourcing that involves the platform owner. Our findings show that labor platform design must balance the needs of individual workers with those of different groups of workers and other actors in the platform ecosystem, including the platform owner. Our findings imply that future design-oriented research on online labor platforms should adopt a platform ecosystem approach.
The success of online communities relies on users’ adherence to community norms, which are often ambiguous and hard to identify and follow. Supporting discussions about norms can help users learn about norms and engage in the norm-evolving process. We aim to understand the dynamics of discussions around community norms and investigate how mechanisms can be designed to scaffold norm-related discussions and regulations. In this paper, we present a mixed-methods study based on a dataset curated from Meta Stack Overflow, which consists of norm-related discussions surrounding a heavily moderated knowledge-based online community, Stack Overflow. Through thematic analyses of 187 questions, 313 answers, and 2,738 comments in the discussion threads, we unveil (1) what triggers norm-related discussions and (2) how people strategically initiate and respond to discussions around norms. Our taxonomy of “whats and hows” of norm-related discussions establishes a foundation for future work to further inspect the nuances and deliberate moderation mechanisms. We also explore the association between the narrative of discussion initiations and discussion sentiments through the lens of construal level theory. Based on our findings, we outline implications and next steps to help online communities establish a healthy and welcoming environment for norm-related discussions.
Smartphone ownership and mobile connectivity in India have expanded rapidly, alongside increasing reliance on digital platforms for welfare delivery, financial services, and civic participation. Yet among low-income blue-collar workers, everyday smartphone use remains centred on entertainment, communication, and work-mandated tasks, with limited engagement with institutional digital services. This paper presents findings from a qualitative interview study with 18 emergent smartphone users across two Indian states. We examine how smartphones are embedded in everyday practices of work, leisure, and institutional interaction, and why widespread access and familiarity do not translate into sustained engagement with welfare-oriented and administrative platforms. Our analysis shows that personal smartphones are frequently appropriated into workplace regimes of surveillance and compliance, while institutional digital services are experienced as opaque, high-risk, and difficult to act upon. Participants’ avoidance of or reliance on intermediaries reflects risk-sensitive strategies shaped by time poverty, mistrust, and limited recourse, rather than deficits in digital skill. We contribute to CSCW and HCI research by reframing institutional non-engagement as a situated response to socio-technical constraints and by highlighting how information formats and trust structures shape digital participation.
This critical research-through-design study at the Stockholm City Archives addresses the lack of research infrastructure supporting image researchers’ metadata needs. It contributes to CSCW by situating design within a broader system of technologies, norms, and institutional practices, revealing what is at stake for archivists and researchers. It shows how the digital transformation of archival practices, rather than enabled participation, has reduced the autonomy of institutions and archivists, reinforcing centralized control, framing user generated content as a risk to institutional legitimacy in an era of misinformation. The findings indicates that a more participatory metadata interface for researchers within the Swedish galleries, libraries, archives, and museums sector require a reformulation of the institutions' role, to being a facilitator and provider of the standards needed for long-term participation, where strong objectivity is developed through more transparent archival processes and decentralized practices.
This paper explores best practices for computer-mediated communication through mobile telepresence robots in educational settings. We present findings from a longitudinal ethnographic study of a hybrid class where students and professors used telepresence robots to participate. We discuss the challenges of articulation work in telepresence robots, particularly around being perceived as courteous. We discuss Murray’s theory of transformation as a goal of telepresence to ensure remote students feel fully included in the classroom. We argue with regards to telepresence that when transformation occurs, you feel fully a part of the remote environment. Our contribution is the use of Grounded Theory (GT) to argue that prior research on articulation and courtesy work can be extended to explain how users overcome challenges that impede transformation. When transformation does occur, telepresence affords deeper embodied participation than possible with traditional videoconferencing applications.
