XVI WAIHCWS – Workshop on Aspects of Human-Computer Interaction for the Social Web

The sixteenth edition of the Workshop on Aspects of Human-Computer Interaction for the Social Web (WAIHCWS’26) focuses on the theme: “Sociotechnical Aspects and Impacts of the Growing Use of AI on the Social Web”. The workshop aims to promote discussions on approaches, methodologies, and challenges related to the social web, and this year seeks to discuss how the increased use of generative Artificial Intelligence models for texts and images has impacted trust, mental health, and generated feelings of helplessness among people participating in the social web. Interaction with AI in this medium means that we confront versions of ourselves that have been processed and recreated by machine learning algorithms; these AI-mediated interpretations may fail to capture or may distort the identity, origin, self-image, and life experiences of people present on the social web. Inter- or transdisciplinary work with the humanities and social sciences in the aforementioned contexts is also encouraged in this edition of WAIHCWS.

Papers are expected to report on studies describing emerging impacts and challenges, especially those focused on the human aspects resulting from direct or indirect interaction with Artificial Intelligence technologies on the Social Web.

Topics of interest include aspects related to the theme, but are not limited to:

• The use of Artificial Intelligence associated with the Social Web;
• Diversity and Inclusion on the Social Web;
• Identity, privacy, security, and ethical aspects of the Social Web;
• Use of computational techniques for generating fake texts, audios, and videos (deep fakes);
• Sentiment analysis and polarization on social networks;
• Hate speech, prejudice, and/or anti-democratic speech on social media;
• Monitoring of misinformation and bots on social networks;
• Approaches, best practices, methodologies, and challenges related to the use of emerging technologies;
• Evaluation of interpersonal interactions through social networks;
• Sustainability in Social Web design using Emerging Technologies;
• Design and evaluation methods that consider social issues and human values;
• Theories and mechanisms to encourage user participation and collaboration;
• Cultural, appropriation, emotional, and affective aspects, and the encouragement of sustainable and equitable behavior;
• Communication, expression, collaboration, and sharing;
• Auditability, trust, and reputation in social networks;
• Ethics in the design, development, evaluation, and use of computational solutions on the social web;
• Interfaces and solutions for promoting accessibility and usability aspects in social media;
• Methods and techniques for evaluating User Experience (UX) in social media;
• Online education, interaction in virtual learning environments, and communities of practice;
• Interfaces and devices for social interaction from the perspective of Universal Design (or Design for all), Inclusive Design, and Design for Equity;
• Factors, characteristics, and measures of success in social software;
• Leveraging social knowledge;
• Knowledge management and organizational learning are combined with technical, human, social, and organizational aspects in the development of social software.