Abstract:    The strategic goals of organizations increasingly consider the role of user experience, impacting both the design of user interfaces as well as the relationships of humans and society to technology. But while knowledge of user needs and human psychology is generally framed as a means of generating empathy or reducing the divide between humans and technology, this knowledge also has the potential to be used for nefarious purposes.

In this talk, I share findings from over five years of my work on dark patterns that addresses practitioners’ engagement with issues of ethical concern. I use the concept of “dark patterns” as a point of connection to identify emerging synergies among design, computer science, ethics, law, and policy. I start with a collection of examples of dark patterns and “asshole designs,” demonstrating the harmful use of manipulative patterns that are ubiquitous—and increasingly under legal scrutiny. I then describe the organizational and disciplinary complexities that make it difficult for practitioners to act in ethically responsible ways. I conclude by describing the potential impact of regulations and enhanced organizational practices in responding to these threats. I use these studies to build a case for ethical engagement in the education and practice of designers and technologists, pointing towards the need for scholars and educators to address both near-term issues such as manipulation, and longer-term issues that relate to social impact, responsibility, and the potential for regulation.

Speaker Bio:   Colin M. Gray is an Associate Professor in the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering at Indiana University Bloomington, where they are Director of the Human-Computer Interaction design (HCI/d) program. They hold appointments as Guest Professor at Beijing Normal University and Visiting Researcher at Northumbria University.

Colin holds a PhD in Instructional Systems Technology from Indiana University Bloomington, a MEd in Educational Technology from University of South Carolina, and a MA in Graphic Design from Savannah College of Art & Design. They have worked as an art director, contract designer, and trainer, and their involvement in design work informs their research on design activity and how design capability is learned. Colin’s research focuses on the ways in which the pedagogy and practice of designers informs the development of design ability, particularly in relation to ethics, dark patterns, design knowledge, and learning experience. They have consulted on multiple legal cases relating to dark patterns and data protection and work with regulatory bodies and non-profit organizations to increase awareness and action relating to deceptive and manipulative design practices. Colin has co-authored or edited four books and over 150 journal articles, conference papers, and book chapters spanning multiple disciplines, including human-computer interaction, instructional design and technology, law and policy, design theory and education, and engineering and technology education.

Colin has a history of extensive involvement in a range of ACM SIGCHI conferences, with major contributions to the EduCHI Annual Symposium on HCI Education (as General Co-Chair and Technical Program Co-Chair), DIS (Associate Chair, Subcommittee Co-Chair, and Workshops Co-Chair), CSCW (Associate Chair), and CHI (Associate Chair). They are also an Associate Editor for the ACM Journal on Responsible Computing, Associate Editor for the journal Designing, and board member and Editorial Assistant for the International Journal of Designs for Learning.

Colin is proudly gay/queer and non-binary and uses they/them pronouns.