MuC 2026 Workshop "Towards Pro-Adaptivity in Human-Computer-Interaction

A Workshop at Mensch und Computer 2026 discussing the future of (pro-)adaptive technology and potential approaches to its implementation, both in assistive technology and beyond.

Organized by the Centre for Assistive Technology Rhine-Ruhr.

Key Dates

The full-day Workshop will be on Sunday, 30.08.2026.

Deadline for Workshop Submissions: 03.06.2026
Notification of Acceptance: 17.06.2026
Final Submissions: 22.07.2026

(All deadlines are Anywhere-on-Earth)

Abstract

The ability to adapt to users’ behavior and environment is an important feature of assistive systems. While most technologies remain primarily reactive, adapting only to current contexts or explicitly configured parameters, pro-adaptive technology represents an emerging research direction that extends this paradigm. Developed in the context of assistive technology (AT), it considers longitudinal trends, anticipating future changes in user abilities to maintain system effectiveness, usability, and user acceptance over time. We therefore propose different levels of adaptability, ranging from static (L1) to pro-adaptive AT (L5). Pro-adaptive AT adapts to meet the user's (future) needs based on anticipated conditions that are derived from past and current sensor data (e.g., changes in ageing or disease). In this workshop, we invite demonstrations, talks, and work-in-progress contributions across disciplines to discuss the future of (pro-)adaptive technology and potential approaches to its implementation, both in AT and beyond. To this end, the workshop adresses interdisciplinary researchers and practitioners to advance user-centered, adaptive technology.

Call for Participation

Our full-day in-person workshop connects researchers and practitioners to present and discuss their work in improving adaptability of systems across various fields and disciplines such as, human-computer/-robot interaction, AI, interactional studies, computer science, engineering, psychology, linguistics and sociology. We aim to provide a panel for interdisciplinary discourse about new dimensions of adaptivity and pro-adaptive systems. The workshop enables participants to present their own research on adaptive systems, reflecting on the different aspects of levels of adaptability together with the attending community.

We welcome all submissions considering new approaches to adaptivity in technology. We call for submissions of short papers (2 – 4 pages, including an abstract with 150 – 250 words and references) detailing conceptual and empirical research or demonstrations of technical systems or applications. Participants will present their submitted work, in a 15 min talk followed by a 5 min discussion. Please make sure to clarify in your submission if you want to give a (live) demonstration. We prefer submissions in LaTeX-format (ACM Template), but OpenDocument / Word files are also possible. Contributions must be submitted via Conftool. All submissions will undergo an interdisciplinary peer-review process with a focus on originality, importance, clarity and relevance to the workshop. Accepted papers will be published in the GI Digital Library. At least one author of each accepted submission must attend the workshop and must register for at least one day of the conference. For more information, including important dates and additional guidelines, please visit our workshop website at https://uni-due.de/kowi/mukom/workshops_muc2026.

Please submit your contributions until 03.06.2026. Accepted submissions will be notified by 17.06.2026 and camera-ready submissions are required by 22.07.2026 (all dates are AOE).

Program

The workshop will encompass a full day and will feature the following activities:

Two keynote talks (30 minutes each) that elaborate on the state of the art and current challenges of adaptivitiy in technology. One of the talks will be held by a member of the Centre of Assistive Technology Rhein-Ruhr and focus on the concept of pro-adaptivity. The other is planned to be held by an invited speaker.
Short presentations of submitted papers (15 minutes talk, 5 minutes discussion)
Two rounds of discussion (30 Minutes) across the workshop, which will feature one moderated plenary discussion on pro-adaptivity and its future directions and one thematic group discussion. The topics of the thematic discussion round wil be selected after reviewing the final submissions.

A full program will be published here in the run up to the workshop.