Understanding Information Activities of Hobbyists in the Making of Arts and Crafts Across Space
The maker movement is recognized for its ability to make making accessible to everyone, democratizing the process and providing opportunities to learn new technology. Making is a practice that involves a great deal of information exchange, with people engaging in various forms of information interaction throughout the creative process. However, in the field of Information Science, the focus has mainly been on youth and students engaging in making at specific venues designed to support such behavior, with little attention given to exploring making as a leisure pursuit. My doctoral dissertation project aims to explore the making process of adult arts and crafts hobbyists. Using the concepts of probes and portfolios in art and design, I conducted a qualitative project consisting of diary studies and semi-structured individual interviews. My objective is to examine the key information activities that arts and crafts enthusiasts engage in while working on their creative projects and discover how they utilize and interact with the environment, especially everyday space. Below are my research questions.
- RQ1: What are key information activities involved in the making of arts and crafts as an information-creating behavior?
1.1. How do arts and crafts hobbyists make?
1.2. What factors operate to influence making?
1.3. How do arts and crafts hobbyists interact with other people? - RQ2: How do arts and crafts hobbyists interact with space in a making context?
2.1. In what type of space does the hobby take place?
2.2. To what extent does space facilitate or interfere with making?
2.3. How do arts and crafts hobbyists construct space to make?
My role
Writing a dissertation is a lengthy but fulfilling process. After identifying a potential research gap and developing a general research plan, I conducted a pilot study to evaluate the feasibility of my data collection and analysis methods. Next, I created a budget and timeline for the project and began recruiting participants and gathering data. The data collection process took approximately six months during the COVID pandemic and involved 25 participants with diverse interests in creative making, each working on a unique project. For data analysis, I performed a qualitative thematic analysis of spoken and written data, as well as a visual content analysis of photographs submitted by participants in their diaries. Along with my responses to the research questions, I also highlight four opportunities for designing creative making in everyday environments. These opportunities are detailed below.
Design implications
- Planning for making in small space
—Limited space is a vital factor that can obstruct the progress of arts and crafts projects.
—The spirit of the tiny house movement may benefit hobbyist participants with small craft areas.
—We may pool the expertise of the information science community to provide support for spatial reappropriation, especially how to reuse and restructure a limited space. - Supporting making across everyday space
—Making can occur almost everywhere.
—It would be difficult, if not impossible, for designers or information professionals to design for every corner of the making environment to spur creativity.
—Rather than aiming to design for each place for a single craft session, information professionals may consider designing for making holistically by emphasizing its entanglement with spatiality. - Facilitating instant and free access to information
—Complimentary sources of information, online or offline, are crucial during the pandemic period.
—Library services may be extended to encompass the hobbyist population, particularly adult arts and crafts hobbyists. This includes somewhat rebranding library makerspace or maker programs to involve more patrons. - Embracing the individualistic aspect of making
—The making activity is usually thought of as a collaborative event. However, not every participant enjoyed sharing what they made with others.It is important to consider the personal facet of creating to embrace everyday making that does not solely spotlight what is made (Chachra, 2015).
—Sharing the accomplishment can be fun and exciting, while staying quiet and concentrating on making per se is also fine.
Featured skills
- Literature Reviews
- User Study
- Interviewing
- Diary Studies
- Observation
- Design Thinking
- Proposal Writing
- Publication Writing
Software
- ATLAS.ti
- Microsoft Office Suite
- Adobe Creative Suite
- Zoom
- Slack
This is the diary template I provide with participants to document their making process. It is encouraged for individuals to adapt the design using various techniques to suit their needs.
Here is a quick overview of how my participants show their creativity when documenting progress on their hands-on projects, which include quilting, watercolor painting, planting, and more.
Publications
- Lee, L., & Ocepek, M. G. (2022). Documenting the fun: Studying artistic information-creating behavior using research diaries. Library & Information Science Research, 44(4), 101192.
- Lee, L., & Ocepek, M. G. (2022). Making across space: Mapping creative information creation in the everyday environment. Library & Information Science Research, 44(3), 101180.
- Lee, L., & Ocepek, M. G. (2023). From virtual to physical: An exploratory study on how online social networks and communities influence decision-making in everyday crafting. In Bui, T. (Ed.), Proceedings of the 56th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, pp. 2232– 41.
- Lee, L., & Ocepek, M. G. (2022). Perceiving libraries in a making context: Voices of arts and crafts hobbyists. In Smits, M. (Ed.), Information for a better world: Shaping the global future. iConference 2022. Lecture notes in computer science (Vol. 13193). Springer, Cham.
- Lee, L. (2021, October). Designing for creative making in the everyday environment. Doctoral colloquium at the CSCW 2021, Virtual Event, USA.
- Lee, L. (2020, October). Revisit the home for creativity: Three opportunities in information behavior research. Poster presented at the SIG-USE Research Symposium 2020, Virtual Event, USA.