Makerspaces and Makerplaces: Collaboration, Togetherness, and Learning in Maker Communities

Faculty: 
Betsy DiSalvo
Students: 
Parisa Khanipour, Kayla DesPortes

Interviews with 61 makers, along with observations in several maker communities, provide empirical insight on the nuances between different types of communities and how these differences are influenced by the space and place of the makerspaces. Our exploration led to the identification of five prototypical maker communities; closed and regulated, open and messy, hybrid, online large-scale, and online small-scale.

Lab: 
Faculty: 
Betsy DiSalvo

The CAT Lab studies how culture impacts the use and production of technology with a focus on learning applications, computer science education and designing new technologies with culture as a point of convergence.