IwC Special Issue “Feminism and HCI: New Perspectives” Special Issue Editors’ Introduction

As a word and as a set of theories and practices, feminism is a poorly understood concept. However, feminist perspectives have a lot in common with user- and value-centered design processes such as those espoused within the field of Human Computer Interaction. Examples include consideration of alternative viewpoints, considerations of agency (who get to say/do what and under what circumstances) and the development of reflective and reflexive methods for understanding how, when, where and why people do what they do. In the “Feminism and HCI: New Perspectives” special issue, we have invited researchers and practitioners to reflect on the ways in which feminist thinking, theory, and practice can and does have an impact on the field of Human Computer Interaction. This introductory editorial offers more background to our view that there is great value to understanding the actual and potential impact of feminist thinking on HCI, followed by a précis of each paper. We close with some observations regarding common themes, points of contention and possibilities for future work.