Deanna Holroyd was awarded a bursary to attend the Digital Humanities Oxford Summer School in 2024. To join the mailing list and learn about the next summer school sign up here. Read about Deanna's experience at the summer school here:
This past August, I had the incredible opportunity to attend the “AI & Creative Tech” online strand of the Digital Humanities at Oxford Summer School. Before attending the workshop, I had only a basic understanding of AI and, as a researcher trained in the humanities, I felt a bit intimidated by my lack of technical knowledge. My hope for these sessions, were that they would help demystify AI for me, provide me with a better lexicon and foundational knowledge for researching AI, and give me some practical examples of how it works and how I could utilize it within my own research. The three days of the workshop were filled with inspiring presentations, that introduced us to the histories and current developments within artificial intelligence, as well as the many different practical, experimental, and creative faces of AI. The summer school brought together experts from a range of disciplines, who shared a variety of projects that engaged with AI on a conceptual level and/or applied AI as part of their broader research projects. From AI-powered musical composition to the creation of immersive 3D models of historical sites, each of these sessions helped me gain a clearer understanding of AI's various applications and the challenges we must navigate in the digital landscape. I particularly appreciated the discussions surrounding the limitations of current AI technology, which helped me more fully consider both the potential and the challenges of working in this rapidly evolving area. I also appreciated the chance to think creatively alongside the presenters about how AI can be used to enhance storytelling and make our research legible to broader audiences.
As a digital and media anthropologist, the highlight of the workshop for me was the session on digital ethnography. The presenters provided a comprehensive overview of different ethnographic techniques and methods, from immersive observation in online spaces to in-depth, interactive interviews that capture user experiences in real time. It was particularly useful to see how digital ethnography could reveal unexpected aspects of user engagement, especially within the context of video games. However, what resonated with me the most were the reflections and discussions on how to attune oneself to the emotional, embodied and social dimensions of ethnographic engagement, as a way to better illuminate the researcher’s positionality in ‘the field’, and draw attention to the culturally and contextually nuanced ways that people engage with technologies and navigate digital platforms. This session came at just the right time for in my own research process, as I have just begun digital ethnographic investigation into video games that are designed to treat mental health disorders, and AI-powered mental healthcare apps. AI and video games have tremendous potential to personalize mental health treatment and provide new forms of care for users, but understanding how people actually use these platforms – how they interact, what they struggle with, and what they find helpful or stressful – requires more than just quantitative data. It requires a nuanced, human-centered approach, which digital ethnography provides. This presentation thus introduced me to several new concepts, approaches, and techniques that have shaped my research design as I have moved forward in my own project. It also encouraged me to think differently about several ethical issues that have surfaced throughout my fieldwork.
Overall, my week at the Digital Humanities Oxford Summer School was deeply enriching. Beyond the technical insights into AI and its applications, I walked away with a clearer vision of how to adopt research methods that are not only academically rigorous but will help me better answer my own research questions. The balance of technical learning and methodological exploration was invaluable, and I feel better equipped to approach my own work with fresh perspectives and practical tools. Attending this summer school thus reinforced for me that, as researchers and creators in the digital realm, we have a responsibility to engage critically with emerging technologies, and provide new methodological and theoretical perspectives on both the harms, and opportunities, that these technologies generate.
