Connecting the dots.
My name is junoh kimm. I’m a year-five Doctoral Researcher at the University of Toronto investigating the complex relationships between people and technology.
My doctoral research examines mobile media practices among teens experiencing major life transitions in the San Francisco Bay Area, California. To undertake this project, i integrate social science theories concerning everyday practices and social networks with a theory of technology that accounts for instabilities in the structural conditions of the environment in which those practices occur. During the course of my colourful career, i was able to gain a diverse range of skills and knowledges – from developing innovative methods to undertake a major UX research to leading cross-functional teams to deliver impactful products.
“Nothing wrong with having fun.”
Jennifer Perreault, “My Man Reminder” project
Although we tend to believe that information comes from a set of particular daily activities and sources, like news outlets and text books, we engage with information both serendipitously and directly here and there throughout the day (as Reijo Savolainen articulates in his concept of everyday information practices). My work in user experience projects explicitly accounts for this complex reality by focusing on the actual human experience rather than the materiality of the technology or media spaces themselves.
“You must unlearn what you’ve learned.”
– Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back
The notion that technology is developed in a “collective exchange of human and nonhuman properties” (Latour 1982 p.151) captivated my interest throughout my professional career. Six years ago, i pursued my academic career to expand my understanding of media design principles and information science.
After starting my career in advertising, i have moved to academia to further understand the relationship between technology and individuals (in both individual and group level) – what philosopher Bruno Latour calls “sociotechnical paradox.” Particularly, i explore;
different paths to forecast the impact a technological object will have via the behaviour we adopt;
the ways in which it abets our everyday practices;
our everyday experience in an era defined by easy access to information and mediated interaction; and
the experiences and perspectives that people with diverse backgrounds have with material objects.
In my work, i borrow a wide range of socio-technical approaches that holistically examine and design various human and non-human factors (e.g. technology and environment) exist in constantly shifting networks of complex relationships.
As of 2021 Spring, i’m working on three research projects:
Project Mobility (projectmobility.net) examining the role that mobile media platforms has been playing in the lives of senior teens during the COVID-19 pandemic and the re-opening in the US.
A pilot study of the use of TikTok for academic knowledge mobilization at the Knowledge Media Design Institute. This project examines both the literature and the compilation of a collection of current examples of the contents made for educational purposes.
Publication of an analysis performed for a Canadian national-scale study that investigates the ways in which the mobile technology is used to connect with personal networks during coming of age.
Sell an experience, not a product.
Upon completion of my undergraduate’s degree in visual communication, i was given an opportunity to work on a number of global accounts from automobile to non-profit organization. My projects varied from delivering creative digital engagement solutions for specific user groups to developing Super Bowl campaigns to reach audiences on a massive scale. My strength in the industry is delivering coherent and creative campaigns across multiple platforms. It is all about giving people little bit of engaging and fun moments not shouting out loud about the brand.
