participation

Conveying the complexity and multifaceted nature of the energy transition to a broad audience is a challenge. This article demonstrates how interactive serious games on a multitouch table can help make connections tangible and comprehensible. The games and the table were used in various conversational contexts. These are presented here in three case vignettes based on participant observation of the different applications, as well as situated and shared reflection. The vignettes demonstrate how interaction can trigger epistemic processes, enable shifts in perspective, and foster collective thinking, all of which are necessary for shaping the future of society as a whole.

Companies, especially SMEs, face the challenge of introducing digital technologies efficiently and as smoothly as possible. Using the introduction of a digital assistance system in technical service as an example, this article shows which challenges and problem areas arise, how they can be overcome and which factors promote a successful introduction process. In the process it is worked out how SMEs with few resources can generate a high degree of participation and acceptance. The basis is a socio-technical understanding that takes a holistic view of the overall system of people, technology and organization in the introduction process of digital technologies.

Assistance technologies are an approach to support skilled workers in their work processes that are currently changing under the influence of the 4th industrial revolution. They aim at reducing physical and psychological stress by processing the big amount of decision-relevant data in a way that it serves workers for their decision-making process. Work places need to be designed in a way that they encourage learning and competence development and that involves future users in this design process.

Maintenance activities require a high degree of problem solving capacity from the specialists in order to be able to successfully carry out troubleshooting tasks. The expertise of the specialists is based in particular on the successful use of knowledge in problem solving situations [2]. Assistance systems should therefore support the specialist in the learning or reflection process and offer the opportunity to use the experience gained from previous measures for the current problem solution. The present paper describes an approach to the development of assistance systems for learning.