ABOUT
CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS
OUTLINE
THE WORKSHOP
PARTICIPANTS
SCHEDULE
OBSERVATIONS
DISCUSSION
DESIGNS
Below is a list of the key themes and concepts that came out of the discussion at the end of the first day. While the discussion was focused around the observations each group had made earlier in the day we found that this led to a broader discussion on the topic of waiting in general.
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Legitimate v illegitimate waiting
Objects used to legitimise waiting: phones, cigarettes, books, coffee
Legitimised or not by where the waiting happens. Where are you allowed to wait?
What if you are waiting for a different purpose than the space was intended for?
Legally v socially legitimate waiting - contextual rules, negotiated waiting
Is it important to be seen to be doing the right kind of waiting?
Who are you accountable to?
How do you show what you are waiting for?
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Does technology give us new ways of waiting?
Is the mobile phone an in or a barrier to interaction?
Technology as channelling points for waiting and social interaction
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Maintaining transition spaces, times and activities
What imposes the rhythm of waiting? What are the tensions of waiting?
Is waiting necessary?
What are the boundaries and end points of waiting?
Patience
And the value of time in general
Time-delimited waiting
Climax of waiting, collective as necessary
Threadedness
Focus
Uncertainty as an aspect of attention and focus
Is waiting the same as a delay? Anticipation?
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The signs and traces of waiting
Noticing, learning
Comfort / discomfort of waiting (in certain situations, locations?)
Actions that indicate waiting - fidgeting
Milling
Waiting posture
Waiting context
Conspicuous waiting
Looking like you are waiting when you aren't and vice versa
Why choose to do one or the other?
Showing you belong
Private v public waiting; role of social embarrassment
Counter-culture waiting
Architecture supporting waiting
Using location as a landmark
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Social or collective waiting
Social coordination of waiting. Emphasising the benefits of waiting
Responsibility
Deskilling
Lack of interest in interacting, cocooning
The 'blitz spirit' of waiting
What are the gendered aspects of waiting?
Social competence
What makes you good at waiting?
What are the dangers of waiting?
Can there be a placebo effect when the person waiting has the perception they are in control, e.g. pedestrian crossings
What is appropriate waiting, and appropriate waiting technologies?
How does waiting alter social relationships?
What would socially accomplished waiting look like? What aspects of waiting need help?
Is it possible to have expertise and gain prestige through waiting?
Fairness in waiting
How is 'good at waiting' culturally specific? In Italy being good at waiting is being good at pushing in
Expectations - and cultural differences of these
Socially and culturally situated
A sense of community in waiting
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The emotional component of waiting
How is it expressed to others?
How does it affect others?
How does it grow to become collective behaviour?
Who / what do you allocate responsibility to when you wait?
How do you adjust your wait?
What are the technologies you can't use while waiting?
Poetry of waiting