Dennis Kirschsieper

Contact

dennis.kirschsieper@uni-siegen.de

+49 271 740-2002

Office address

US-E 103

1st floor

Kohlbettstraße 15

57072

Siegen

Contact

dennis.kirschsieper@uni-siegen.de

+49 271 740-2002

Weblinks

Website

Vita

Dennis Kirschsieper studied sociology with minors in philosophy and psychology from 2003 to 2010 at the University of Duisburg-Essen. From 2009 to 2011, he worked as a student and research assistant on the BEATA project (Employment Relationships as Social Exchange) at the Chair of Sociology of Work, Occupation, and Organization under Prof. Dr. Hanns-Georg Brose (University of Duisburg-Essen). From 2011 to 2012, he served as a lecturer for special assignments at the Chair of General Sociology/Sociological Theory under Prof. Dr. Andreas Göbel (University of Würzburg). From 2012 to 2017, he was a research assistant at the Chair of General Sociology/Sociological Theory under Prof. Dr. Gregor Bongaerts (University of Duisburg-Essen). From 2018 to 2021, he worked on the CroGa project (Crowdfunding as Gift Exchange) in the Department of Sociology of Technology and Innovation under Prof. Dr. Ingo Schulz-Schaeffer (Technical University of Berlin). Since December 2021, he has been assisting Prof. Dr. Claudia Müller in subproject A05 of the SFB 1187 at the Chair of Business Information Systems, specifically IT for an Aging Society.

Publications

[1] Krayter, Stephan; Bhattacharjee, Sourav; Fatima, Fareha; Patanker, Ankita; Epping, Laurin; Mueller, Claudia (2026)
Beyond AI Capability – Governance, Trust, and Realistic Scope in Rural Health Chatbots
In: Proceedings of the 2026 ACM Interactive Health Conference, pp. 1–7, DOI: 10.1145/3786579.3804951
Abstract Links

This work-in-progress examines how rural health professionals and end-users perceive chatbots for navigating health services. Through interviews with six professionals and thirteen end-users, we identified four critical design tensions. The groups agreed that trust requires transparency, not technical sophistication, and that humans are irreplaceable in sensitive situations. However, they differed on priorities: professionals emphasized institutional integration, while end-users emphasized privacy and usability. Our findings challenge conventional assumptions. Confident but incorrect answers erode trust more than honest uncertainty. Attempts at humanization backfire. Escalation pathways must lead to tangible outcomes. Chatbots require contextual data, but collecting it poses privacy risks. Rather than technical solutions, effective design requires acknowledging competing stakeholder needs. We propose four principles: transparent source attribution, user-controlled interaction settings, genuine institutional integration, and governance transparency through local embedding. We reframe rural chatbots as infrastructure, not standalone technology. They must integrate into existing institutions and trust networks to reduce the burden while preserving human-centered care.

[2] Stark-Blomeier, Anna Lea; Krayter, Stephan; Albrecht, Joanna; Dockweiler, Christoph (2026)
Ready for Digital Rehabilitation Aftercare: Requirements for Designing Training Programs Based on Multi-Perspective World Cafés
In: Journal of Evidence, Continuing Education, and Quality in Healthcare, Volume: 200, pp. 67–75, DOI: 10.1016/j.zefq.2025.10.002
Keywords: italg; eHealth literacy; Education; Digital rehabilitation aftercare; Quality dimensions; Rehabilitation; Telerehabilitation aftercare
Abstract Links

Abstract Background With the increasing use of digital services in rehabilitation, there is a need to prepare therapists and patients as effectively as possible for their use. Quality-assured training concepts can contribute to improving the quality of care provided through digital services. The study aimed to identify requirements for the design and implementation of training measures in digital rehabilitation aftercare. Methods In January 2024, two World Cafés on training for patients and therapists were held. These took place online with patients, therapists, physicians, and manufacturers. The structured content analysis according to Kuckartz was based on the dimensions of conceptual, structural, process, and outcome quality. Results: Fourteen people participated in each of the two World Cafés. To ensure conceptual quality, participants recommended not only imparting knowledge about the process, effectiveness, and relevance but also practical testing of the digital tools—for example, through guided training sessions for patients during their rehabilitation stay or observational placements for therapists. With regard to structural quality, qualified training staff and appropriate spatial, technical, and financial resources were deemed necessary. According to the respondents, to achieve high process quality, not only those involved in follow-up care but also the entire hospital staff and all rehabilitation patients should be informed. Training processes should be standardized—for example, through checklists for therapist onboarding or by mandating that decisions regarding follow-up care be incorporated into the final rehabilitation consultation with patients. Properly designed training programs can help reduce prejudices against digital offerings, increase acceptance, and thus promote high-quality training outcomes. Discussion The content analysis resulted in a catalog of 14 requirement areas across the four quality dimensions, which supports a needs-based, structured design and implementation of future training programs in digital rehabilitation follow-up care. Background With the increasing use of digital services in rehabilitation, there is a need to prepare therapists and patients to use them in the best possible way. Quality-assured training concepts can contribute to improving the quality of care provided through digital services. This study aimed to identify requirements for developing and implementing training courses in telerehabilitation aftercare. Methods In January 2024, two World Cafés on training for patients and therapists were held. They took place online with patients, therapists, physicians, and software manufacturers. Kuckartz’s structuring content analysis was based on the dimensions of conceptual, structural, process, and outcome quality. Results Fourteen people participated in each of the two World Cafés. To ensure conceptual quality, the participants recommended not only imparting knowledge about the process, effectiveness, and relevance, but also practical testing of the digital tools—for example, through supervised training for patients during their rehabilitation stay or job shadowing for therapists. Regarding structural quality, qualified training staff and adequate spatial, technical, and financial resources were considered necessary. To achieve high process quality, the interviewees stated that not only those involved in aftercare but all clinic staff and all rehabilitation patients should be informed. Training processes should be standardized, for example, through checklists for therapist onboarding or by making the aftercare decision a mandatory part of the rehabilitation discharge consultation with patients. Properly designed training courses can help reduce prejudices against digital services, increase acceptance, and thus promote high-quality outcomes for training courses. Discussion: The content analysis resulted in a catalog comprising 14 requirement areas across the four quality dimensions, which supports the needs-oriented, structured design and implementation of future training courses in telerehabilitation aftercare.

[3] Krayter, Stephan; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Reichstein, Martin F.; Meisner, Konrad; Wissenbach, Lars; Humbert, Christophe; Lechevalier, Sebastien; Mueller, Claudia (2026)
Technology Design for Community-Based Care in Rural Contexts: National Conditions and Local Practices
In: 1st EUSSET International Conference on Innovation in Rural Regions (ICIRR), DOI: 10.48340/icirr2026_30
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

This workshop examines how innovative digital technologies can improve and reshape health, care, and social services in more integrative, community-oriented, and ethically grounded ways. It focuses on how these dynamics unfold across different national welfare and care systems and in rural areas. By framing these challenges through the lenses of HCI and CSCW, we emphasize socio-technical systems, participatory design, and human-centered approaches. While macro-level frameworks shape institutional conditions, care is ultimately enacted through local practices shaped by social, cultural, and infrastructural contexts. These local practices are also shaped by technological infrastructures, a perspective highlighted in CHI research on socio-technical systems and participatory care design. The workshop explores how digital tools can foster collaboration among diverse stakeholders and how participatory design and socio-technical approaches can ensure these tools are context-sensitive and inclusive. With a focus on interdisciplinarity, the workshop brings together researchers from CSCW, HCI, sociology, social work, healthcare, public administration, and technology development. Through collaborative discussions, participants will examine how institutional conditions affect local care provision, explore strategies for participatory design, and identify generalizable and context-specific challenges in the digitalization of social services. The goal is to foster theoretical and practical insights that bridge disciplinary boundaries and inform the design of equitable, sustainable, and responsive digital infrastructures for community-based care.

[4] Krayter, Stephan (2026)
The Work Behind the Network: Practitioner-Led Governance Innovation in Rural Healthcare
In: 1st EUSSET International Conference on Innovation in Rural Regions (ICIRR), DOI: 10.48340/icirr2026_08
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

Rural regions face a persistent gap between the need for coordinated healthcare and the institutional conditions that would make coordination sustainable. This paper examines how practitioners in a rural-industrialized German region bridge that gap through a governance innovation: a loosely coupled inter-organizational network organized around a recurring expert forum. Through qualitative interviews with organizers (n=6) and participants (n=11), we analyze the coordinative work this arrangement requires and the tensions it must navigate. We report four findings. First, network-level coordinative work consistently exceeds formal mandates, constituting extra work sustained only through individual absorption. Second, we introduce the “visibility-anchoring gap”: coordinative work that is collectively recognized but institutionally unanchored, resulting in person-dependent networks vulnerable to departures and funding discontinuities. Third, the forum functions as the primary knotworking infrastructure where ambient cross-sectoral contact cannot develop organically. Fourth, coopetition bifurcates: a surplus of demand dissolves client competition, while competition for donations and prestige persists independently. For CSCW, we extend the concepts of articulation work, extra work, and infrastructuring—introducing the visibility-anchoring gap as a concept that captures coordinative work that is collectively recognized yet institutionally unanchored. For rural innovation scholarship, we demonstrate that the informal governance arrangements rural practitioners develop to manage systemic fragmentation represent a distinct mode of socio-technical innovation.

[5] Krayter, Stephan; Bittenbinder, Sven; Meisner, Konrad; Reichstein, Martin F.; Wissenbach, Lars; Müller, Claudia (2025)
Invisible Work in Social Service Access: Barriers, Resources, and Consequences
In: Proceedings of the 23rd EUSSET Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work, DOI: 10.48340/ecscw2025_pd05
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

This paper, based on an interview study with social service users, explores the complex process of accessing this system and the invisible work it requires beforehand. Drawing on Knecht and Schubert’s resource taxonomy, the study analyzes the interplay of personal and environmental resources, revealing how their cultivation and maintenance constitute “invisible work”—a pivotal factor in achieving successful service access. Through 12 in-depth interviews, supplemented by a written account, participants’ initial pathways to social services were reconstructed. The interviews illustrate that informal resources and pathways frequently play a decisive role, alongside formal procedures. These informal routes vary considerably in the amount of invisible work they demand. To alleviate this hidden burden, I propose exploring digital platforms or centralized entry points as potential solutions. These innovations could streamline access, reduce reliance on informal networks, and ultimately enhance equity in service provision.

[6] Krayter, Stephan (2025)
Medicalization and Psychologization in Scientific and Public Discourses—The Perception of Poverty, Unemployment, and Childhood Development
DOI: 10.25819/ubsi/10723
Abstract Links

In this dissertation, I examine processes of medicalization and psychologization in various discourses. Medicine and psychology have played a substantial role in describing social conditions, which is true across a variety of contexts—from scientific discourses, in which knowledge is generated and discussed, to public discourses such as mass media or political debates. A central focus of this dissertation is the mechanism by which such processes occur and which actors are involved. For the scientific discourse, I analyzed which disciplines have led international research on poverty in the Web of Science (WoS) between 1956 and 2017 and what changes in content have thus become evident over time. In the (mass) media discourse based on various daily and weekly newspapers in Germany, I examined how reporting over the past 25 years on unemployment and childhood has been shaped and whether these two areas are more strongly linked to medical and psychological issues. In a further study, I focused on the COVID-19 pandemic. Since external influences can also give rise to tendencies toward medicalization and psychologization, I analyzed the extent to which school closures in Germany have driven increased interest in mental health among children and adolescents. Here, I was able to demonstrate that this was indeed the case and that, in addition to the purely epidemiological aspects of the pandemic, threats to mental health—as a side effect of non-pharmaceutical measures—became more prominent. Overall, I demonstrate that processes of medicalization and psychologization can be traced in various discourses through different actors and that external influences such as the COVID-19 pandemic can play a significant role.

[7] Stark-Blomeier, A. L.; Krayter, Stephan; Dockweiler, C. (2025)
Developing a competency model for telerehabilitation therapists and patients: Results of a cross-sectional online survey
In: PLOS Digital Health, Volume: 4, No.: 1, p. e0000710, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pdig.0000710
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

Telerehabilitation is a new form of care that provides digital access to rehabilitative services. However, it places many demands on users—both patients and therapists. The aim of this study was to determine the requirements and competencies needed for successful use, identify person- and context-specific differences, and develop a competency model. We conducted two cross-sectional online surveys with telerehabilitation patients and therapists from Germany between June and August 2023. The adjusted dataset of 262 patients and 73 therapists was quantitatively analyzed using descriptive and bivariate statistics. Group differences were assessed using t-tests or U-tests. The development of two telerehabilitation competency models was guided by a competency modeling process. The surveys show that patients need to gather program information before the program begins, follow the therapist’s instructions, adapt their therapy, manage health issues, and motivate and remind themselves throughout the program. Therapists need to inform and instruct patients, adapt therapy, handle technical setup and support, provide medical support, guide and monitor patients, offer feedback, motivation, and reminders, and maintain documentation. The competency model for patients includes 23 core competencies, and the model for therapists includes 24, covering various required areas of knowledge, skills, attitudes, and experience. The three most relevant competencies for patients are personal interest in the program, self-awareness, and self-management. Additionally, disease severity, age, and language skills can contribute to successful implementation. Program type, technological proficiency, and age significantly influence the perceived relevance of competencies. The three most relevant competencies for therapists are therapeutic and professional skills, medical knowledge, and telerehabilitation knowledge. The type of therapy practiced and language proficiency can facilitate successful implementation. The therapist’s age, comfort with technology, and job type significantly impact the perceived relevance. The models should be used to develop tailored training formats and to support decisions regarding the selection of suitable therapists and patients for telerehabilitation.

[8] Krayter, Stephan; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Müller, Claudia (2025)
Beyond Implementation: Exploring Older Adults’ Perspectives on the Electronic Patient File (ePA) in Germany
In: Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Infrastructures for Healthcare, DOI: 10.48340/ihc2025_pd011
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

The German Electronic Patient Record (elektronische Patientenakte – ePA) represents a key digital infrastructure in Germany’s evolving healthcare system. While its technical development and institutional implementation have received considerable attention, the everyday practices and perspectives of patients remain largely invisible in current research and public discourse. This paper presents an ongoing qualitative study that highlights patients’ expectations, concerns, and initial experiences regarding the use of the ePA. Drawing on initial interviews, we explore how patients make sense of the ePA, navigate access, and articulate concerns regarding data control, utility, and trust. Our findings point to a gap between institutional logics and lived practices, raising critical questions about the (non-)use of infrastructure and user agency. While data collection is ongoing, initial insights already highlight the importance of embedding patient perspectives into the design and evaluation of digital health infrastructures. We argue that efforts to build infrastructure must extend beyond technical rollout to include patients as co-creators of meaningful, accessible, and trustworthy health systems.

[9] Stark-Blomeier, Anna Lea; Krayter, Stephan; Dockweiler, Christoph (2025)
Competency requirements for patients and therapists in telerehabilitation aftercare: a qualitative study
In: Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences, Volume: 6, DOI: 10.3389/fresc.2025.1640416
Keywords: italg; qualitative research; rehabilitation; aftercare; focus groups; skills; telemedicine; telerehabilitation
Abstract Links

IntroductionRehabilitation aftercare serves to maintain the success of treatment following medical rehabilitation. Digital services, such as app-based training or therapist-led video calls, are increasingly being used in rehabilitation and aftercare as alternatives that offer greater flexibility in terms of time and location. However, such systems place various demands on users. The study aims to identify the requirements and competencies needed by patients and therapists for the successful use of telerehabilitation aftercare in Germany. Materials and Methods The study employed an exploratory, qualitative approach. Focused interviews were conducted to gather user experiences with telerehabilitation aftercare. Fifteen therapists participated in three focus group interviews, while five patients took part in three individual or two-person interviews. Using an interview guide, patients and therapists were asked about the steps involved, preparation processes, required competencies, and possibilities for adaptation in relation to telerehabilitation aftercare. The evaluation was conducted using structured content analysis according to Kuckartz and Rädiker. Results: Depending on the program used and the therapists’ professional backgrounds, the perceived requirements for use varied, including technical proficiency, motivation for training, and individual therapy adaptations. Both target groups considered application-, process-, and impact-related knowledge; technical, socio-emotional, and cognitive skills; a positive attitude toward technology; and technical experience to be necessary. Therapists emphasized professional skills as well as experience, and patients emphasized sufficient physical skills, such as motor skills. The influence of sociodemographic factors on usage was the subject of debate. Conclusion: The findings suggest focusing not only on technical but also on professional and social competencies in training and continuing education in order to promote the competent use of telerehabilitation follow-up care. If sufficient opportunities are created to learn about and try out such programs, uncertainties could be reduced and positive user experiences could be promoted. Due to the small sample size, the results cannot be generalized without restriction, and further research with a larger and more diverse sample is necessary.

[10] Stark-Blomeier, Anna Lea; Krayter, Stephan; Dockweiler, Christoph (2025)
Training Needs in Telerehabilitation: Results of a Cross-Sectional Online Survey with Therapists and Patients
In: Frontiers in Public Health, Volume: 13, DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1688055
Keywords: italg; curriculum; education; rehabilitation; competency; aftercare; telemedicine; telerehabilitation; needs assessment
Abstract Links

Introduction: In light of the ongoing digital transformation of healthcare, training needs analyses are essential to address the changing requirements of providing and using healthcare services. This applies in particular to the growing field of telerehabilitation. To date, a comprehensive overview of the current training landscape and potential training gaps among telerehabilitation users has been lacking. This national survey therefore aims to assess existing training opportunities and training needs among both telerehabilitation patients and therapists, taking personal and contextual differences into account. Methods In 2023, two cross-sectional online surveys were conducted—one with telerehabilitation patients and one with telerehabilitation therapists from Germany. Drawing on the Hennessy-Hicks approach as a guiding framework, participants were asked about the relevance and their performance level regarding predefined telerehabilitation competencies to determine training needs. Furthermore, data was collected on the telerehabilitation program used, the training opportunities received and utilized, and their content. Personal and contextual differences were assessed using t-tests and U-tests. Results: The 262 patients and 73 therapists mostly rated their own performance in the telerehabilitation competencies as rather good. In the past, various training opportunities were available. Patients were primarily instructed by their therapist or doctor, and therapists were instructed via written informational materials in preparation for telerehabilitation. However, both target groups exhibited minor training needs. Patients predominantly required training in self-regulatory skills, such as patience, self-awareness, and motivation, while therapists needed enhanced knowledge related to telerehabilitation and technology. In some cases, patients and therapists with low technological affinity, women, and patients using app-based telerehabilitation showed significantly higher training needs. Conclusion: The study results can contribute to the development of a telerehabilitation curriculum for therapists and the design of needs-based training programs for patients. The implementation of a standardized training program can support the competent and consistent use of telerehabilitation and contribute to improving the quality of care in the future. Further research is needed to determine which training formats and modalities are effective for the different types of competencies that are lacking.

[11] Bittenbinder, Sven; Weiler, Tim; Paluch, Richard; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Specovius, Oliver; Müller, Claudia (2025)
Research Buddy—From a Framework for Overcoming Language Barriers to the Development of a Qualitative Citizen Science Platform
In: Interacting with Computers, Volume: 37, No.: 4, pp. 300–313, DOI: 10.1093/iwc/iwae047
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

Students benefit from international study programs in fields such as HCI. However, user-centered research in a foreign country presents certain challenges, particularly language barriers when conducting fieldwork and ethnographic and participatory studies. An additional obstacle arises when targeting groups that do not speak English, such as in Germany, where English was not taught in schools until the 1970s. The goal and challenge of the present project, “Research Buddy,” is to bring together young international students and older adults as co-researchers in Germany. We describe the participatory development of the concept for a matching platform and its design. In focus groups with older adults, university faculty, and students, requirements for a collaborative research infrastructure were jointly identified and prototypically implemented. The empirical results focus on the possibilities the platform offers for qualitative citizen science in the field of age tech.

[12] Weiler, Tim; Paluch, Richard; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Procter, Rob; Ortega Roman, Deysi Helen; Syed, Hussain Abid; Tellioglu, Hilda; Hochwarter, Stefan; Lichtenegger, Katharina; Müller, Claudia (2025)
Negotiating Extra Work: A Reflection on Participatory Research Practices in Healthcare
In: Proceedings of the 23rd EUSSET Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work, DOI: 10.48340/ecscw2025_cp02
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

This reflection paper examines the often-overlooked extra work required to conduct and sustain participatory research in healthcare contexts. Scientific projects require forward planning, methodological flexibility, and institutional recognition of the additional effort needed to enable sustainable participatory research. Drawing on three healthcare-related case studies, we analyze the tensions between formal project objectives and the realities of conducting research in complex, situated environments. Extra work manifests at multiple levels: (1) within the project scope, (2) at the boundary of the project scope, (3) before the project scope, (4) after the project scope, and (5) outside the project scope. While extra work can serve as a driver of innovation and long-term sustainability, it also creates a fundamental tension for researchers who must balance these emerging demands with project goals, institutional frameworks, and personal capacities. Building on existing concepts from CSCW—such as invisible work and articulation work—we systematically apply and extend these perspectives to the field of technology development in healthcare. By identifying cross-cutting issues in the case studies—such as stakeholder acquisition and co-benefits—we refine conceptual understandings of infrastructuring, articulation work, and situatedness in participatory research. In doing so, we contribute to grounded design and design case study approaches and reflect on the methodological and practical implications of navigating the inherent tensions of adaptive, long-term engagement in healthcare cooperation.

[13] Tokgöz, Pinar; Krayter, Stephan; Hafner, Jessica; Dockweiler, Christoph (2024)
Decision support systems for antibiotic prescribing in hospitals: a survey of hospital managers on factors influencing implementation
In: BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making, Volume: 24, No.: 1, p. 96, DOI: 10.1186/s12911-024-02490-7
Keywords: italg; Artificial intelligence; Antibiotic prescribing; Decision support systems; Hospital; Implementation
Abstract Links

[14] Schulz-Schaeffer, Ingo; Gajewski, Eltje; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Kleemann, Frank (2024)
The Interplay of Consumption, Engagement, and Community in Reward-Based Crowdfunding: An Empirical Analysis of Crowdfunding Projects Based on Gift Exchange Theory
DOI: 10.1007/978-3-658-45646-7
Keywords: italg; wineme

[15] Engelbutzeder, Philip; Jahn, Leonie; Berns, Katie; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Wulf-Miskati, Daniel; Schäfer, Franka; Randall, Dave; Wulf, Volker (2024)
Utopian Design Space: Practical Concerns and Transformative Ambitions
In: Interacting with Computers, p. iwae055, DOI: 10.1093/iwc/iwae055
Abstract Links

Interconnected global crises have highlighted the need for alternative visions of the future, making transformative action urgent. Consequently, Sustainable Human–Computer Interaction (SHCI) has seen growing interest in exploring ways to support radical and sustainable change, beginning with grassroots, community-driven initiatives. This study explores the concept of Utopian Design Space (UDS) in the context of surplus redistribution in grassroots communities. The objective is to understand how practical concerns and transformative ambitions intersect, creating spaces that foster practices of sharing and caring. Through action-oriented research, we examine six local projects, highlighting the role of ICT in these initiatives. Our findings highlight the challenges and opportunities in managing values, scalability, sustainability, and inclusivity within UDSs. We discuss how aligning ICT with community practices can foster socio-technical innovation and support transformative change, introducing the notion of prefigurative technology. These insights can help us envision design spaces that foster utopian ideas such as equitable resource distribution and generalized reciprocity.

[16] Kirschsieper, Dennis; Aal, Tanja; Müller, Claudia (2024)
Idea Development, Decision-Making, and Power Imbalances in Co-Creating Web Platforms for Building and Supporting Caring Communities
In: Practices of Participation and Co-Creation in CSCW Healthcare Research, pp. 20–27
Keywords: italg
Links

[17] Stark, Anna Lea; Krayter, Stephan; Dockweiler, Christoph (2023)
Competencies Required by Patients and Health Professionals Regarding Telerehabilitation: A Scoping Review
In: DIGITAL HEALTH, Volume: 9, pp. 20552076231218841, DOI: 10.1177/20552076231218841
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

Background: Telerehabilitation offers patients an alternative means of accessing therapy and has gained prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the growing appeal of such programs, there are gaps in the research regarding the competencies required for demand-oriented technology use in rehabilitative care. Objective: The study aims to gather evidence on the competencies required by patients and health professionals for using telerehabilitation. We analyze tasks and requirements associated with telerehabilitation and derive and systematize relevant competencies. Methods We conducted a scoping review and searched MEDLINE, Psyndex, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, and Web of Science for empirical studies and gray literature from 2017 to May 2022. Articles had to be in English or German and pertain to medical rehabilitation provided by health professionals in the patient’s home. Results: One hundred ten articles were included, covering video conferencing systems, applications with video, audio, or visual therapy content, and wearables. Depending on the program, tasks before, during, and after therapy sessions vary, as does who performs them—health professionals, patients, or the technology. Users require digital, health-related, social, and personal competencies, while healthcare professionals need professional competencies. These include knowledge of telerehabilitation, technical, health-related, and clinical knowledge; a range of physical, cognitive, social-interactive, technical, and clinical skills; a positive attitude toward telerehabilitation; and experience. It is unclear whether sociodemographic factors contribute to successful use. Conclusions: Telerehabilitation requires a variety of different competencies from patients and healthcare professionals—going beyond the realm of technical skills. This highlights the need to evaluate existing programs designed to promote competencies in the use of telerehabilitation and to refine these programs in line with current demands.

[18] Krayter, Stephan; Ariaans, Mareike (2023)
Poverty: More Than Just a Lack of Material Resources?
In: Toward a Biopsychosocial Welfare State? How Medicine and Psychology Transform Social Policy, pp. 107–128, DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-32793-3_5
Keywords: italg; Germany; Discourse; Medicalization; Poverty; Psychologization; Science
Abstract Links

[19] Krayter, Stephan (2023)
News Coverage of Mental Health in Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic – An Analysis of the German Press Landscape
In: Zeitschrift für Sozialreform, Volume: 69, No.: 2, pp. 119–142, DOI: 10.1515/zsr-2022-0103
Keywords: italg; COVID-19; Children; Lockdown; Mental Health; Newspaper; SARS-CoV-2
Abstract Links

The COVID-19 pandemic led to fundamental changes in all aspects of public life. Non-pharmacological interventions (NPIs) have had a significant impact on children given their early stage of development and the limited coping strategies and resources they possess to deal with such stressors. Since the discourse on the effectiveness and side effects of interventions plays a key role in legitimizing these interventions, this article aims to determine both who discusses children’s mental health in the news media and which aspects are addressed. The results of a quantitative discourse analysis of three German daily and weekly newspapers during the first two lockdowns in Germany reveal that political actors are the most frequent speakers in the discourse, although health professionals are playing an increasingly prominent role. Thematically, children’s mental health is becoming significantly more prominent in the discourse, which is likely to lead to future political action.

[20] Schulz-Schaeffer, Ingo; Kirschsieper, Dennis (2023)
Is Paying Yourself a Taboo Topic in Reward-Based Crowdfunding?
In: TUTS Working Papers, 1/2023, 1–25.
Keywords: italg
Links

[21] Kaspar, Heidi; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Müller, Claudia; Gashi, Shkumbin (2023)
Co-producing knowledge: Reflections from a community-based participatory research project on caring communities to strengthen aging in place
In: Routledge International Handbook of Participatory Approaches in Ageing Research
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

A key tenet of participatory approaches across all theoretical and disciplinary traditions is the goal of establishing equal research partnerships between scholars and citizens and/or professionals to co-create knowledge that benefits communities or social groups. Valuing and integrating diverse sets of knowledge—such as experiences from everyday life and professional practice, as well as contextual, relational, and conceptual knowledge—is commonly cited as a prerequisite. However, few accounts exist that offer reflections, let alone guidance, on the complex process of co-producing knowledge. This chapter contributes to the development of participatory approaches in aging research by providing insights from a community-based participatory research project that established “caring communities” as a social and health initiative to support aging in place in Switzerland. We reflect on a three-year research partnership between academics from two universities and residents, professionals, and political leaders in one of the project’s pilot municipalities. We explore which different sets of knowledge emerge during moments of cooperation and how they interact. We identify two forms of interaction between sets of knowledge: (1) working in parallel on clearly assigned tasks and (2) engaging with one another to create novel solutions. Participatory research is well positioned to create momentum for a shift from Mode 1 to Mode 2 knowledge production, with inspiration and information flowing in both directions between science and society.

[22] Kirschsieper, Dennis (2023)
Carsten Ochs, Sociology of Privacy: Restrictions on Information Access—From Reputation Management to the Right to Unpredictability. Weilerswist: Velbrück Wissenschaft 2022, 560 pp., paperback, €59.90
pp. 306–310
Keywords: italg
Links

[23] Aal, Tanja; Ruhl, Andrea; Kohler, Erich; Choudhary, Apurva; Bhandari, Pragya; Devbhankar, Namrata; Egli, Silvia; Shkumbin, Gashi; Kaspar, Heidi; Spittel, Madlen; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Müller, Claudia (2023)
CareConnection – A Digital Caring Community Platform to Overcome Barriers to Asking for, Accepting, and Giving Help
In: MuC '23: Mensch und Computer 2023, pp. 318–324, DOI: 10.1145/3603555.3608578
Keywords: italg
Links

[24] Aal, Tanja; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Hasan, Md Rashidul; Müller, Claudia (2023)
Media Use Among Older Adults in Bangladesh: Religion, Perceived Sinfulness, and the Taming of Media
In: Digital Culture & Society, Volume: 9, No.: 1, pp. 153–176, DOI: 10.14361/dcs-2023-0108
Keywords: italg
Links

[25] Paluch, Richard; Cerna, Katerina; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Müller, Claudia (2023)
Practices of Care in Participatory Design With Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Digitally Mediated Study
In: Journal of Medical Internet Research, Volume: 25, No.: 1, p. e45750, DOI: 10.2196/45750
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

Background: Participatory Design (PD), although an established approach in user-centered design, presents specific challenges when working with older adults as research participants. Addressing these challenges involves reflecting on and negotiating the positionalities of researchers and research participants and includes various acts of giving and receiving help. During the COVID-19 pandemic, aspects of positionalities and (mutual) care became particularly evident in qualitative and participatory research settings. Objective: The aim of this paper was to systematically analyze care practices in participatory (design) research, which are, to varying degrees, practices of the latter. Using a multi-year participatory design (PD) project with older adults that had to be conducted remotely over many months, we identify different care practices; how they relate to collaborative work within the design project; and how they represent foundational practices for sustainable, long-term co-design. Our research questions were “How can digitally mediated PD function during the COVID-19 pandemic, and can we understand such digital PD as ‘care’?” Methods: Our data comes from the Joint Programming Initiative “More Years, Better Lives” (JPI MYBL), a European Union project that aims to promote digital literacy and technology adoption among older adults in home settings. It focused on the co-creation—by older adults and university researchers—of a mobile demo kit website featuring co-created resources, designed to improve understanding of how digital tools can be used. Through a series of workshops, a group of 21 older adults explored a range of current IT products, which served as the basis for joint co-creative work on generating design ideas and prototypes. We reflect on the participatory design (PD) process and examine how the participants enact and manifest care. Results: The use of digital technology enabled the participatory project to continue during the COVID-19 pandemic and highlighted the digital skills of older adults and the improvement of digital literacy as part of “care.” We provide empirically based evidence of participatory design with older adults, focusing on the development of digital literacy and the exploration of concepts related to care, based on Tronto’s notion of care for differentiating aspects and processes of care. The data suggest that it is not enough to focus solely on the technologies and how they are used; it is also necessary to focus on the social structures in which help is available and in which technologies offer opportunities to perform care work. Conclusions: We document that the co-creation of various digital media tools can be used to provide a community with mutual care. Our study demonstrates how research participants effectively enact different forms of care and how such “care” is a necessary foundation for a genuinely participatory approach, which became particularly meaningful as a form of support during the COVID-19 pandemic. We reflect on how notions of “care” and “caring”—which were central to the pandemic response—are also central to PD.

[26] Stark, Anna Lea; Krayter, Stephan; Dockweiler, Christoph (2022)
Competencies Required by Patients and Therapists Regarding Telerehabilitation: A Scoping Review Protocol
DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/9QK7A
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

[27] Paluch, Richard; Struzek, David; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Bittenbinder, Sven; Müller, Claudia (2022)
Inclusion Through Technology? Development of Technical Artifacts With and For Vulnerable Groups
In: Health and Technology
Keywords: italg
Links

[28] Struzek, David; Kirschsieper, Dennis; Müller, Claudia (2022)
Introduction and Adaptation of an Urban Neighborhood Platform for Rural Areas
DOI: 10.48340/ecscw2022_p08
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

Various digital tools can be used to strengthen neighborhoods. This paper reports on a publicly funded participatory cross-sectional project in six German villages. To meet the villages’ requirements—which were identified in citizen workshops together with local stakeholders—a selection process was conducted, and the decision was made to use an existing and well-known neighborhood platform. We highlight the challenges posed by the fact that the platform was not actually designed for the specific needs of rural villages, but rather for larger cities or urban areas, necessitating various adaptation and implementation processes. We examine the trade-offs and negotiations between research-led and community-oriented demands during the introduction and adaptation phase of the neighborhood platform, with regard to motivations for use and the roles of local stakeholder groups.

[29] Krayter, Stephan; Reibling, Nadine (2020)
Medicalization and Psychologization of Poverty? An Analysis of the Scientific Discourse on Poverty from 1956 to 2017
In: Journal of Poverty and Social Justice, Volume: 28, No.: 3, pp. 361–381, DOI: 10.1332/175982720X15979441697421
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

[30] Dittmar, Nele; Kirschsieper, Dennis (2020)
Theory of the Digital Society: Review of: Armin Nassehi, Muster. Theory of the Digital Society, CH Beck, Munich 2019, 352 pages, hardcover, A 26, 70; ISBN 978-3-406-74024-4.
In: Economy and Society, Volume: 46, No.: 3, pp. 460–464

[31] Brose, Hanns-Georg; Kirschsieper, Dennis (2019)
Endless Acceleration? On Time and Temporality in Organizations
In: Handbook of Organizational Sociology, pp. 1–20, DOI: 10.1007/978-3-658-15953-5_34-1
Abstract Links

[32] Linden, Philipp; Reibling, Nadine; Krayter, Stephan (2018)
Better Sick and Unemployed Than “Just” Unemployed? The Effects of the Medicalization of Unemployed People on Stigmatization Processes
In: Journal of Social Reform, Volume: 64, No.: 4, pp. 431–461, DOI: 10.1515/zsr-2018-0022
Keywords: italg
Abstract Links

The integration of (long-term) unemployed individuals is a central challenge for labor market and social policy. Activation and the associated conditionality of social benefits have significant implications for the perception of unemployed individuals, who are increasingly experiencing stigmatization. Health limitations or disabilities—which are considered the sole grounds for recognizing (temporarily) limited employability and enable a link between receiving social benefits and exemption from the obligation to work—thus take on new significance. This paper examines whether the medicalization of unemployment reduces stigmatization. We therefore use data from the “Labor Market and Social Security” (PASS) panel to examine the influence of exemption on perceived stigmatization. Entropy-balanced, multivariate OLS regressions show no significant reduction in stigma for exempted individuals.

[33] Kirschsieper, Dennis; Brose, Hanns-Georg (2016)
Time and Temporality in the Reorganization of a Border Site—in Light of Systems and Practice Theory
pp. 379–389
Abstract

[34] Kirschsieper, Dennis; Herwig, Anna (2014)
Is Meat Consumption (Still) a Private Matter? An Analysis of a Barbecue Forum.
In: Media Constructions of Meat. Reflections on the Analysis of Complex Discourses on Nutrition, pp. 229–254

[35] Brose, Hanns-Georg; Kirschsieper, Dennis (2014)
Asynchrony and Synchronization. On the Relationship Between Diachrony and Synchrony in Social Systems Theory
In: Journal of Theoretical Sociology, Volume: 2, pp. 172–219

Dennis Kirschsieper

Business Information Systems / It for the Ageing Society - Research Assistant

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Teilprojekt A05 - Research Assistant

Zentrum für interdisziplinäre Gesundheitsforschung (ZIGS) - Member of ZiGS

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