Digital Society & Methods

MAIN EVENTS

10am Keynote - Ben Light, University of Salford - Using the Walkthrough Method in a Multi-Method Study: An Example from the COVID Sex Lives Project.

Break

11:30am Interactive Session - App Walkthroughs and Digital Health - Adi Kuntsman, Manchester Met.

Lunch

1:30pm Panel 1 - App Walkthroughs: Key Challenges and Innovations - Stefanie Duguay, Concordia University, Jessamy Perriam, ITU Copenhagen, Sunniva Sandbukt ITU Copenhagen.

Break

3pm Panel 2 - App Walkthroughs and Social Media Influence - Sophie Bishop, Sheffield University, Ysabel Gerrard, Sheffield University.

Break

4:15pm - App Walkthroughs and Platform Governance - Alex Ross and David Nieborg, University of Toronto, Daniel Joseph, Manchester Met.

Keynote details:

In this presentation I will share insights from the COVID Sex Lives Project. This project has been exploring the pandemic experiences of men who have sex with men who live in the UK, particularly as related to their sex lives (or lack thereof). In particular, the project has looked at the role of hookup apps as public health messaging channels and as mediators of diverse pandemic sexual cultures. We combined walkthrough and online survey data to generate understandings of these cultures. We also explored the developments in digitally mediated sexual cultures via other mechanisms during this time. This project was funded by the UKRI/AHRC via the COVID Response Call. It is a joint project between the University of Salford (Ben Light), Birmingham City University (John Mercer), Kings College London (Jamie Hakim) and Newcastle University (Karenza Moore).

Speaker details:

Ben Light is Professor of Digital Society at Salford University. His research concerns people’s everyday experiences of digital media with a focus on (non)consumption, gender and sexuality, digital methods, and digital media engagement for arts, culture, health and wellbeing. He is author (with Susanna Paasonen and Kylie Jarrett) of NSFW: Sex and Humor in Social Media (2019 MIT Press) and Disconnecting with Social Networking Sites (Palgrave 2014). Ben has published widely in journals such as New Media and Society, First Monday, Information Communication and Society, Cultural Sociology, Information Technology and People, Convergence and Continuum.

Event Venue

Manchester Metropolitan University, Geoffrey Manton Building (GM230), Rosamond Street West, Manchester, United Kingdom