Can playing with LEGO® help us understand our data?

Hardy, Alex Can playing with LEGO® help us understand our data? [Preprint]

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Abstract

This article explores how LEGO® can be used as a creative tool to engage individuals in meaningful discussions about the security, confidentiality, and availability of organisational data. The Defence Data Research Centre (DDRC) sought an accessible and engaging method to study attitudes toward data, moving beyond traditional interviews. Inspired by past workshops and a rich body of sociotechnical literature, the team developed hands-on activities using LEGO® to facilitate visualisation, reflection, and storytelling. Findings indicate that LEGO® fosters participation, reveals hidden assumptions, and supports dialogue across social and technical dimensions. Although the workshops diverged from LEGO® Serious Play®'s (LSP) prescriptive guidelines, they proved effective in helping participants critically engage with complex concepts. The article concludes that LEGO® offers a valuable, if unconventional, method for sociotechnical research, particularly in mapping and understanding data relationships in organisations.

Item Type:	Preprint
Uncontrolled Keywords:	46 Information and Computing Sciences, 3602 Creative and Professional Writing, 36 Creative Arts and Writing, Generic health relevance
Divisions:	Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of the Arts
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	01 Sep 2025 09:22
Last Modified:	01 Sep 2025 09:22
DOI:	10.2139/ssrn.5338008
Open Access URL:	https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_i...
Related Websites:	Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3194243