Participatory research (PR) encompasses research designs, methods, and frameworks that use systematic inquiry in direct collaboration with those affected by an issue being studied for the purpose of action or change. PR engages those who are not necessarily trained in research but belong to or represent the interests of the people who are the focus of the research. Researchers utilizing a PR approach often choose research methods and tools that can be conducted in a participatory, democratic manner that values genuine and meaningful participation in the research process. This article serves as an introduction to participatory research methods, including an overview of participatory research, terminology across disciplines, elements that make a research method participatory, and a model detailing the choice points that require decisions about which tools and methods will produce the desired level of participation at each stage of the research process. Intentional choices of participatory research methods, tools, and processes can help researchers to more meaningfully engage stakeholders and communities in research, which in turn has the potential to create relevant, meaningful research findings translated to action.

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Participatory Research Methods – Choice Points in the Research Process

Recent reports from the European Parliament Technology Assessment unit and the UK Information Commissioner’s Office have highlighted the need for debate on how society should balance the convenience that new technology affords with the need to preserve privacy. To date, most of the debate has addressed the more visible aspects of technology and privacy such as surveillance cameras, identity/loyalty cards, internet search engines and RFID tags. In this paper we seek to use our experience as computer scientists to advance this debate by considering issues arising from our research related to intelligent buildings and environments, such as the deployment of autonomous intelligent agents. Intelligent buildings and environments are based on the use of numerous “invisible”, omni-present, always on, communicating computers embedded in everyday artefacts and environments. Whilst most current intelligent building technology is based around automated reactive systems, research is underway that uses technology to gather personal information from people and use this information to deliver personalised services to them. While promising great benefits this technology, by being invisible and autonomous, raises significant new dangers for individuals and society as a whole. Perhaps the most significant issue is privacy - an individual’s right to control the collection and use of personal information. Rather than focusing on the ‘here and now’, this paper looks forward to where this research could lead, exploring the issues it might involve. It does this by presenting descriptions of current work, interleaved with a set of short vignettes that are intended to provoke thought so that developers and the population at large might consider the personal and regulatory needs involved. We end this paper by offering a conceptual framework for situating multi-disciplinary socio-technical research in Intelligent Buildings.

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Some socio-technical aspects of intelligent buildings and pervasive computing research

This paper introduces the Internet-of-Things (IoT) and describes its evolution from a concept proposed by Kevin Ashton in 1999 through its public emergence in 2005 in a United Nations ITU report entitled “The Internet of Things”, to the present day where IoT devices are available as off-the-shelf products from major manufacturers. Using a systematic study of public literature, the paper presents a five-phase categorisation of the development of the Internet-of-Things from its beginnings to the present day. Four mini case studies are included to illustrate some of the issues involved. Finally, the paper discusses some of the big issues facing future developers and marketers of Internet-of-Things based products ranging from artificial intelligence (AI) through to customer privacy and acceptance finishing with an optimistic assessment of the future of the Internet-of-Things.

The Internet-of-Things: Reflections on the past, present and future from a user-centered and smart environment perspective

Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability

This paper uses a case study of collaborative work practices within the radiology department of a hospital, for examining the usefulness of spatial approaches to collaboration. It takes a socio-political perspective on understanding the shaping effects of spatial arrangements on work practices, and seeks to identify some of the key CSCW issues that can be addressed in spatial terms. We analyse the spatial settings or layers (physical, digital and auditory) within which work takes place, and the qualities of connections between them, examining in how far they support (professional) boundaries or help maintain a sense of context. Guiding themes are the relationships between space and the visibility of work, and how to accommodate social world needs through spatial arrangements.

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Work Practices Surrounding PACS: The Politics of Space in Hospitals

Current governance structures are increasingly showing inability to address complex issues such as the Grand Challenges. Dealing with these highly interrelated, cross cutting, extensive and potentially open ended issues requires research, development and innovation to be oriented towards societal needs and demands. Here, developing and applying sustainable long term strategies for socio-technical change on the basis of socially robust knowledge seems inevitable and using the tools of anticipatory governance—forward looking and participation—is essential in order to govern innovation actively and responsibly. Yet, expert-based forward looking has its limits, especially when considering long term perspectives, and may fail to include all necessary opinions. Thus, stakeholder engagement has become a norm over the last decades, but including laypeople into forward looking science, technology and innovation (STI) governance is underexplored. Here, strategy and policy programme development may be well suited to function as early entry point for public needs and values into the innovation process. This paper will briefly review the theoretical basis for transdisciplinary forward looking and provide first insights into an ongoing highly deliberative and reflexive foresight and co-creation process engaging science, society and policy makers, CIMULACT—Citizen and Multi-Actor Consultation on Horizon2020. We will especially focus on the role of technology within a collective visioning exercise that allowed for shared explorations of desirable futures, thereby collecting tacit knowledge as well as social needs and values. Integrating these with stakeholders’ and experts’ knowledge serves for co-creating socially robust knowledge for orienting policy and strategy programming towards needs based science, technology and innovation.

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Human centred science and technology—transdisciplinary foresight and co-creation as tools for active needs-based innovation governance

This volume examines the relationship between privacy, surveillance and security, and the alleged privacy–security trade-off, focusing on the citizen’s perspective.

Recent revelations of mass surveillance programmes clearly demonstrate the ever-increasing capabilities of surveillance technologies. The lack of serious reactions to these activities shows that the political will to implement them appears to be an unbroken trend. The resulting move into a surveillance society is, however, contested for many reasons. Are the resulting infringements of privacy and other human rights compatible with democratic societies? Is security necessarily depending on surveillance? Are there alternative ways to frame security? Is it possible to gain in security by giving up civil liberties, or is it even necessary to do so, and do citizens adopt this trade-off? This volume contributes to a better and deeper understanding of the relation between privacy, surveillance and security, comprising in-depth investigations and studies of the common narrative that more security can only come at the expense of sacrifice of privacy. The book combines theoretical research with a wide range of empirical studies focusing on the citizen’s perspective. It presents empirical research exploring factors and criteria relevant for the assessment of surveillance technologies. The book also deals with the governance of surveillance technologies. New approaches and instruments for the regulation of security technologies and measures are presented, and recommendations for security policies in line with ethics and fundamental rights are discussed.

This book will be of much interest to students of surveillance studies, critical security studies, intelligence studies, EU politics and IR in general.

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Privacy and security: Citizens’ desires for an equal footing

Modern societies are vulnerable. We have known this long before the attacks of September 11, but they made it clear to everyone. The second lesson learned was that it is impossible to foresee such events. Although these attacks to the real world were low-tech, now there are attempts around the globe to control especially the electronic or virtual world. However, does more surveillance really lead to more security? If so, what will be the price we have to pay? This paper gives an overview over what happened on a governmental level after September 11 in the EU, in some EU-member states and in the USA. Apart from political actions, we already face even direct socio-economic implications as some anonymizer services were shut down. They empowered Internet users to protect their right of privacy, and they were the first targets of investigation and suspicion. Shutting down these services reduces the potential room of users to protect their privacy by using privacy enhancing technologies (PETs). This is an indicator for a serious societal problem: democracy already has changed. In a second part this paper analyses the relationship between surveillance and security. It is argued that, the international over-reactions will not lead to the intended effects. Rather, they will have long-term implications for the respective societies.

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Surveillance and Security - A Dodgy Relationship

Looking back on the many prophets who tried to predict the future as if it were predetermined, at first sight any forward-looking activity is reminiscent of making predictions with a crystal ball In contrast to fortune tellers, today’s exercises do not predict, but try to show different paths that an open future could take A key motivation to undertake forward-looking activities is broadening the information basis for decision-makers to help them actively shape the future in a desired way Experts, laypeople, or stakeholders may have different sets of values and priorities with regard to pending decisions on any issue related to the future Therefore, considering and incorporating their views can, in the best case scenario, lead to more robust decisions and strategies However, transferring this plurality into a form that decision-makers can consider is a challenge in terms of both design and facilitation of participatory processes In this paper, we will introduce and critically assess a new qualitative method for forward-looking activities, namely CIVISTI (Citizen Visions on Science, Technology and Innovation; wwwcivistiorg), which was developed during an EU project of the same name Focussing strongly on participation, with clear roles for citizens and experts, the method combines expert, stakeholder and lay knowledge to elaborate recommendations for decision-making in issues related to today’s and tomorrow’s science, technology and innovation Consisting of three steps, the process starts with citizens’ visions of a future 30–40 years from now Experts then translate these visions into practical recommendations which the same citizens then validate and prioritise to produce a final product The following paper will highlight the added value as well as limits of the CIVISTI method and will illustrate potential for the improvement of future processes

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Forward-looking activities: incorporating citizens’ visions

Modern societies are vulnerable. We have known this long before the attacks of 11 September 2001, but they made it clear to everyone. The second lesson learned from the attacks was that it is impossible to foresee such events. Although these attacks to the real world were “low-tech”, now there are attempts around the globe to control especially the electronic or virtual world. However, does more surveillance really lead to more security? If so, what will be the price we have to pay?



National states try to provide their citizens with a high level of security, but the effort for better security often gets mixed up with the claim for more surveillance. This is one reason why, over the past few months, governmental activities seemed to jeopardise the internationally acknowledged fundamental right of privacy. Societal security versus personal freedom is an old and well-known area of conflict. In the light of the incidents of 11 September 2001 some old ideas for surveillance and for measures restricting privacy got on the agenda again – and new ones keep emerging.



This article will give an overview of what happened on a governmental level after 11 September 2001 in the EU, in some EU-member states and in the USA. Apart from political actions, we already face even direct socio-economic implications as some anonymiser services were shut down. They empowered Internet users to protect their right of privacy, and they were the first targets of investigation and suspicion. Shutting down these services reduces the potential room for users to protect their privacy by using Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs). This is an indicator for a serious societal problem: democracy has already changed.



In the second part I will analyse the relationship between surveillance and security and I will argue that, and give reasons why, these international over-reactions will not lead to the intended effects. Rather, they will have long-term implications for the respective societies. So in the end this has to be acknowledged in a necessary appreciation of values.

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Walter Peissl

Papers

Human centred science and technology—transdisciplinary foresight and co-creation as tools for active needs-based innovation governance

Privacy and security: Citizens’ desires for an equal footing

Surveillance and Security - A Dodgy Relationship

Forward-looking activities: incorporating citizens’ visions

Surveillance and Security: A Dodgy Relationship1