Understanding NUI-supported nomadic social places in a Brazilian health care facility

We use the concept of third place as a lens to understand and catalogue the natural socializing practices of Brazilians within a chronic care hospital setting in order to understand natural practices that can be used on the design of NUI technologies to support Brazilian sociability and communities. Third places, as introduced by Oldenburg, are places that lie in-between the seriousness of work and the privateness of home, where social links are exercised through inclusive and playful conversation. We performed an ethnographic study with a community of Brazilian health care professionals at a chronic care hospital. We observed that daily socializing, through constant playful conversation creates a sense of “togetherness” that appears essential for problem solving and leads to more efficient work groups. We found that third places within the studied community happen as serendipitous gatherings where personal and work stories are exchanged. These gatherings occur in unexpected places and are nomadic in nature, thus, the third place location is fluid. NUIs and other ICTs can promote these gatherings by creating “informational hubs” where people can come together to acquire, discuss and share information.