A review of selected methods, techniques and tools in Child–Computer Interaction (CCI) developed/adapted to support children’s involvement in technology development

Abstract

Abstract Child–Computer Interaction (CCI) explores the design of systems that reflect the nature of children’s growth and cognitive development, and the opportunity for children’s involvement in the design process through developing their own technology in collaboration with researchers and designers. In this paper, we focus on the potential roles played by children in the design process, and we review various CCI methods, techniques, and tools that have been developed/adapted to support children’s involvement in design. In particular, we offer a systematic mapping and description of the methods, techniques, and tools from User-Centred Design (UCD), Learner-Centred Design (LCD), Participatory Design (PD), and their overlaps. Through a review of these different approaches to design interventions, we discuss some of the elements involved in the reviewed co-design activities, i.e., the age and number of the involved individuals or the settings and contexts of the design activities. We also examine the level of information (or lack of) offered in the reviewed publications and highlight areas that require more attention. As a result, we hope to offer a resource that could benefit and inspire future designers/researchers in the CCI field in selecting design activities for collaborative work with/for young individuals in developing and testing different interactive technologies. We also hope to identify requirements for future research that will help to improve and expand current knowledge in the field of CCI.