Brittany Yau

UPDATE - A Participatory Narrative Toolkit

Design for Change - MA

School of Art

s2798240@ed.ac.uk

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UPDATE Toolkit introduction.pdf (415.31 KB)

Digital Divide - The Wall of Voice

Digital public services promise efficiency and accessibility, yet many everyday frustrations remain invisible because they are rarely captured by institutional data. This participatory installation invited members of the public and technology professionals to record moments of difficulty encountered when using digital civic services. Participants physically mapped their experiences onto a shared timeline and collaborative visualisation, transforming individual stories into a collective "Wall of Voice" of lived experiences. The installation revealed that barriers occur across all levels of digital literacy and that many struggles remain unseen by data-driven systems. More importantly, public participation extended beyond data collection, as the evolving physical display encouraged spontaneous conversations between strangers. These qualitative findings became the foundation for the next stage of the project, where civic experiences were translated into reflective narrative investigations through the UPDATE toolkit.

Participatory Data Physicalisation

UPDATE - Participatory Narrative Translation Toolkit

UPDATE is a Participatory Narrative Translation Toolkit that transforms lived experiences of digital exclusion into reflective Live Action Role-Playing (LARP) investigations. Developed through participatory research with members of the public and professionals, the project responds to the often invisible barriers people encounter when accessing digital public services.

Rather than presenting statistics or policy reports, UPDATE translates qualitative civic experiences into physical evidence, character narratives, and collaborative investigations that invite players to question the assumptions embedded within digital systems. Through embodied, discussion-based gameplay, players explore issues of accessibility, governance, ethics, and responsibility from multiple perspectives, encouraging reflection on how digital public services are designed and experienced.

Instead of proposing another technological solution, UPDATE offers a reusable framework for translating qualitative research into critical learning experiences. While demonstrated through the context of digital public services, the toolkit can be adapted to a wide range of socio-technical issues, supporting participatory education, design practice, and public engagement through collaborative storytelling and reflective play.

Participatory Narrative Translation Pipeline

The framework demonstrates how lived civic experiences can be systematically translated into reflective learning. Insights collected through participatory research are first analysed to identify recurring socio-technical challenges and underlying assumptions. These findings are then transformed into narrative events, character perspectives, investigative evidence, and systemic rules that together form an immersive role-playing experience. By engaging participants in collaborative investigation rather than passive observation, the toolkit encourages future designers and technology practitioners to critically examine the assumptions embedded within digital public services. Although demonstrated through the context of digital exclusion, the framework is designed to be adaptable, enabling educators, researchers, and communities to translate local qualitative findings into new reflective scenarios addressing a wide range of complex socio-technical issues.