Communicating a Scattered Cultural Urban Event: A Survey on User Needs Across Generations

Abstract

In public urban spaces different generations meet and eventually end up by sharing the same kind of activities. Nowadays, more occasions of encounter are generated by a widespread push to the re-appropriation of urban spaces for green, social and inclusive aims, so creating sustainable urban ecosystems. Information and Communication Technologies scattered in the urban environment boost these processes by supporting the user experience in different kinds of services. For example, in the transport sector several digital technologies allow the use of shared mobility services and sustain other kinds of more sustainable behaviors for travelers both improving their mobility experience and motivating them towards a common green goal. According to this scenario, the paper examines the physical and digital media and services that might support the user experience during a scattered cultural urban event. Indeed, events that concern different urban spaces at the same times require different kinds of efforts by the attendants, from retrieving information about the available sites, to getting the indication on how to reach them. However, different habits and needs emerge according to the different age of the attendants. The paper shows the results of a survey administered to a group of people from different ages attending a cultural event in Rome. The study analyzes the kind of media and services people used and suggested to retrieve information about the event. Then it envisions some opportunities that emerge in creating services supporting the communication and the user experience of the event, and of the city as well.