Ecological Systems Theory for Studying and Designing Menstrual TechnologiesShow others and affiliations
2026 (English)In: CHI 2026 - Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) , 2026, article id 1355Conference paper, Published paper (Refereed)
Abstract [en]
Menstrual experiences are shaped by many different stakeholders, entities, and the broader socio-cultural context, or in other words, the ecological systems surrounding a menstruator. We explore what it means to take an ecological approach in studying and designing menstrual technologies. We translated and adapted Ecological Systems Theory (EST) for menstrual wellbeing and packaged the outcome in the form of a socio-ecological Canvas, accompanied by written examples and a set of prompts to facilitate engagement. We invited ten experts to engage with the Canvas in reflective workshops, which informed its further refinement. These sessions highlighted the Canvas' generative value, fostering critical reflection on how design choices are shaped by and ripple across layers of influence. With this translational research, we invite HCI researchers and practitioners to critically reflect on the ecologies they study and design for, envisioning both aspired versions of existing realities and realities that do not exist yet.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) , 2026. article id 1355
Keywords [en]
Canvas, Ecological approach, EST, menstrual health and wellbeing, menstrual technologies, translational research
National Category
Other Engineering and Technologies Human Computer Interaction
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-382876DOI: 10.1145/3772318.3791619Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-105038779996OAI: oai:DiVA.org:kth-382876DiVA, id: diva2:2065096
Conference
2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI 2026, Barcelona, Spain, April 13-17, 2026
Note
Part of ISBN 9798400722783
QC 20260603
2026-06-032026-06-032026-06-03Bibliographically approved