Socio-technical Scenarios for RRI

The Case of the SNIFFPHONE Project

Background: SNIFFPHONE Project• SNIFFPHONE

• H2020 Research and Innovation Project

• Device detects gastric cancer throughunique ‘breathprint’ of cancer biomarkers

• Mobile phone add-on device uses sniffingtechnology

• Non-invasive, portable device that allowscontact with doctors

• Multi-disciplinary consortium: commercial and research; medical and technical; SMEsand large organisations

Practical Challenge

• How to integrate RRI intoa technical project?

– Most partners have littleor no knowledge of RRI

– Ethical and societal issues are complex and cross-cutting

– Resources (time, money) are limited

Theoretical Problems

• How to avoid idea thatpositive impacts of projectoutweigh and overcomecomplexity and possible resistance?

• How to ensure open discussion while alsointroducing possibilty of addressing ethical issues?

Approach: Socio-technical Scenarios

• Develop a number hypotheticalscenarios– Scenarios are ‘useful fictions’– Aim is to encourage

construction of technology, not to predict outcomes

• Use scenarios based on similarexercises in related domains

• Use four scenarios and have participants analyse themseparately, then convene for discussion

Outcomes

• Use of scenarios prompted some reflection on ultimate goals of project (e.g. improving qualityof life vs ‘curing cancer’)

• Prompted reflection on how to includestakeholders in future exercises

• Led to discussion of privacy and data-miningissues

• Opened discussion of ‘responsible business model’

Other Uses

• Socio-technical scenarios are a useful ‘soft intervention’ to provide a first introduction to RRI

• Can be used to flag potential issues for other stakeholdersto pick up on

• Provide an interface between technical, societal and ethicalaspects of project

• Are concrete and practically oriented• Similar methods could be used in teaching ethics and

societal issues to give a more practically oriented approachto teaching these subjects