Publication Type

Conference Proceeding Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

10-2012

Abstract

Eating with others, or commensality, is an enjoyable activity that serves many important social functions; however, many individuals eat meals alone due to life circumstances, meaning that they miss out on these social benefits. We developed and deployed a simple technology probe providing social awareness around mealtimes to explore how social systems might help alleviate the loneliness of solitary dining. Our findings suggest that these systems can convey a sense of connectedness around a meal; further, our analysis revealed three themes relevant to systems of this type: that contextually-located peripheral awareness engenders connectedness; that such tools can foster a feeling of shared social presence, and that they can be a catalyst for other forms of communication around the meal. These findings suggest that “remote commensality” is not only possible, but that it may take on forms entirely different to that which we are accustomed.

Keywords

HCI, Social computing, Awareness, Contextual information, Design, Food, Mealtime

Discipline

Graphics and Human Computer Interfaces

Research Areas

Information Systems and Management

Publication

GROUP '12: Proceedings of the 2012 ACM International Conference on Supporting Group Work, Sanibel Island, Florida, USA, 2012 October 27-31

First Page

103

Last Page

106

ISBN

9781450314862

Identifier

10.1145/2389176.2389192

Publisher

ACM

City or Country

Sanibel Island, Florida, USA

Copyright Owner and License

Authors

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1145/2389176.2389192

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