Reimagining the Cyborg – How Queer-feminist STS can Contribute to Prostheses Research

Abstract

Queer-feminist science and technology studies (STS) critically inquire science and technology and their promises enable new possibilities and challenging their manifestations, which are often seen as reproducing and increasing inequalities on local and global levels (Cipolla et al. 2017). The transdisciplinary technology development project PROTEA (2022-2025) has received funding to integrate a gender dimension into the human-centred technology design of 3D-printed prostheses with integrated sensor technology (Thaler et al. 2024). The gender research is adding an intersectional perspective to the participatory technology design itself, and raising gender awareness and knowledge within the research team. This paper demonstrates how a queer-feminist STS lens can intervene with the aim of challenging existing norms and standards in human-centred design through using the cyborg narrative (Haraway 1991, 2016) to analyse data. The queer-feminist lens challenges potential defaults by the research funders, and led to new research questions beyond prostheses improvement.