Stephanie Tang Waldrop. "The Invisible Weight of Cognitive Labor." MDes Thesis, University of Washington, 2022.
Adviser:
Cognitive labor is the mental work it takes to run a home. This type of labor, separate from physical tasks, is a form of domestic labor that often goes unnoticed.
It is an invisible mechanism that shapes our home life and it has historically been excluded from research on topics related to dimensions of household work. Because of this, it is difficult to generate a full, nuanced account of the domestic work that occurs in our everyday lives.
This thesis uses design as a means to better visualize and make tangible this invisible facet of home labor.
Read Medium post about the research phase.
Read Medium post about the design phase.
View images and read a related commentary on the Graduate Showcase website.