Don't Blush: Sexuality, aging & design

Abstract

HCI research is increasingly addressing how technology and design can support the ageing process; from everyday activities, to social life and civic participation, to experiences with ill health - particularly as age-related illness leads to problems with independent living. Despite this increasing interest in ageing, issues of sexuality and intimacy are rarely addressed, with elderly bodies often marginalised, infantilised and rarely considered as desired, desirable or sexual. Older age also brings an increased risk of dementia, which raises issues of informed consent in sexual relationships. Given a similarly recent increase in interest in sexual health in HCI, we bring together these converging interests in this one-day workshop, where we raise these and related topics with the DIS community to bring together researchers from a wide variety of fields to explore future avenues for research and design in this understudied but potentially rich field.