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Engaging feminist solidarity for comparative research, design, and practice

Abstract:

Research in the fields of Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW) and Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) is increasingly embracing and moving across borders. While universalism in such research is widely rejected, sole focus on the “particular” is also commonly critiqued. Kentaro Toyama unpacks this tension, calling for balance via “deliberate efforts to understand the interplay of human universals and cultural differences, and how it pertains to design.” In this paper, one such deliberate effort, we introduce the notion of feminist solidarity—as theorized by Chandra Mohanty—for drawing connections across borders in CSCW and HCI research, design, and practice. To enable contributions in these fields to cross cultures and geographies in productive ways, we draw attention to commonalities in the struggles and processes of resistance operating in different contexts of study. To do this, we present lessons learned from conducting three comparative studies in six contexts, which were located across various borders. The primary contribution of our analysis is to leverage a feminist solidarity-based approach towards extending conversations on comparative, transnational, and feminist CSCW and HCI research, design, and practice. Our focus remains on resource-constrained regions across the world, in both the Global North and South.