Abstract
In today's globalised and technologically advanced world, differences in technical skills and communication preferences between the different generations can make interactions between them challenging. This paper explores the design of products that facilitate joyful, asynchronous communication between different age groups, with a focus on fostering emotional presence and connection despite physical distance. Two speculative design artifacts for communication were developed and tested by design students as part of a semester project. Our observations indicate that designs for effective intergenerational communication should include surprising and playful elements, promote familiarity and intimacy while considering the physical and social context of the users. Key factors include fixed placement, mono functionality and clear interaction roles and responsibilities.
Keywords
Tangible user interfaces; Intergenerational communication; Speculative design; Accessibility
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/iasdr.2025.901
Citation
Sobol, Y., Licht, E., Hemmert, F., Wicht, H.,and Möller-Lindenhoff, T.(2025) Connecting Generations with Asynchronous Messages: Designing Objects for Intergenerational, Asynchronous Communication, in Chang, C.-Y., and Hsu, Y. (eds.), IASDR 2025: Design Next, 02-05 December, Taiwan. https://doi.org/10.21606/iasdr.2025.901
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
Track 3 - Design, Art & Technology
Connecting Generations with Asynchronous Messages: Designing Objects for Intergenerational, Asynchronous Communication
In today's globalised and technologically advanced world, differences in technical skills and communication preferences between the different generations can make interactions between them challenging. This paper explores the design of products that facilitate joyful, asynchronous communication between different age groups, with a focus on fostering emotional presence and connection despite physical distance. Two speculative design artifacts for communication were developed and tested by design students as part of a semester project. Our observations indicate that designs for effective intergenerational communication should include surprising and playful elements, promote familiarity and intimacy while considering the physical and social context of the users. Key factors include fixed placement, mono functionality and clear interaction roles and responsibilities.