About me

I am a Lecturer of Computing and Game Design in the School of Computing, Engineering, and Technology at Robert Gordon University. I conduct interdisciplinary research at the intersection of Human-Computer Interaction, Media Studies, and Social Science. I study how features on the periphery of digital media and games can enable or enforce a variety of inequitable interactions and outcomes that disproportionately affect historically underprivileged groups. I aim to provide analytical tools to help designers and researchers alike to better reflect on the media artifacts they create or observe. I practice collaborative/participatory methods to amplify the perspectives of those least represented in—or with the least access to—digital media, platforms, and technologies. I often use digital game software and platforms as a microcosm for examining broader socio-technical phenomena. You can find details of my publications on Character Configuration and the impacts of representation, maintaining coherence in massive chats, teaching game design and more on my research outputs page. I have also worked with the iSchool Inclusion Institute (i3) as both teaching fellow and research mentor since 2017.

I earned my PhD in Informatics at University of California, Irvine in 2021. I worked with Bonnie Nardi, Theresa Tanenbaum, Bo Ruberg, and Geoffrey Bowker. Before that, I completed an MA in Medicine, Science and Technology Studies from the Department of Anthropology at UC Irvine, and a BA in Anthropology from Cal-Poly Humboldt. Prior to returning to higher education, I worked as an information systems security analyst. Before that I managed a game store and was an animator for a time. I have also worked in outdoor education on and off for more than a decade and have experience in various mountain and ocean-based recreational settings, as a NAUI Divemaster and AAUS Scientific Diver.