My name is Kirk Crawford (he/him/his), and I’m a Ph.D. candidate in the Human-Centered Computing (HCC) Program at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), and a researcher at the Designing Participatory Futures Lab (DARE). I’m advised by Dr. Foad Hamidi.
For more information about my academic and industry experience, please see my 📃CV.
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My research explores how technology can better support the relationships and communication practices of LGBTQIA+ disabled and neurodivergent people, especially those with limited or fluctuating communication abilities. I use participatory design methods to work with romantic partners as they share and co-create communication strategies as their relationships evolve, focusing on how intimacy, interdependence, and identity shape their practices and preferences. My goal is to empower disabled and neurodivergent queer people as designers of technology and to inform a rethinking of how technologies are designed by centering their lived experiences and addressing the specific communication needs of their relationships.
| January 2025 | Peer-Reviewed Publication - CHI 2025
(Available Soon) “Like a Love Language”: Understanding Communication in Disabled LGBTQIA+ Romantic Relationships | | --- | --- | | October 2024 | Accepted Poster - ASSETS 2024
Co-designing a 3D-Printed Tactile Campus Map With Blind and Low-Vision University Students | | May 2024 | Peer-Reviewed Publication - W4A 2024
Decoding the Privacy Policies of Assistive Technologies |