Dr Matt Wood

Assistant Professor

School: Computer Science

I am fascinated by the complicated and messy relationships we hold with digital technologies, and work predominantly in Human Computer Interaction.

I utilise (playful) qualitative methods to examine and interrogate these relationships, and I am a contributor to Victoria Clarke and Virginia Braun’s work in and .

Much of my is around Digital Sexualities, which was also the focus of my (Open Lab, Newcastle University, EPSRC Centre of Doctoral Training in Digital Civics).

Most recently I have developed an interest in Citizen Centred AI.

My interest in the relationships between people and technology also extends to my artistic work as a Puppeteer (see on instagram), concerning the intersection of human and non-human forms and the notion of ‘giving life’ to inanimate objects.

You can find me online:

Email Matt

Key Publications

Challenges and Opportunities of LLM-Based Synthetic Personae and Data in HCI, Prpa, M., Troiano, G., Wood, M., Coady, Y. 11 May 2024, CHI EA '24: Extended Abstracts of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, New York, United States, ACM
"Are We Now Post-COVID?": Exploring Post-COVID Futures through a Gamified Story Completion Method, Troiano, G., Wood, M., Sonbudak, M., Padte, R., Harteveld, C. 28 Jun 2021, DIS 2021 - Proceedings of the 2021 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference, ACM
"and This, Kids, Is How i Met Your Mother": Consumerist, Mundane, and Uncanny Futures with Sex Robots, Troiano, G., Wood, M., Harteveld, C. 21 Apr 2020, CHI 2020 - Proceedings of the 2020 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, ACM
Looking heteronormatively good! Combining story completion with Bitstrips to explore understandings of sexuality and appearance, Hayfield, N., Wood, M. 2 Jan 2019, In: Qualitative Research in Psychology
Research in the wild via performance: Challenges, ethics and opportunities, Taylor, R., Spence, J., Hook, J., Williamson, J., Wood, M., Chen, K. 4 Jun 2019, TVX 2019 - Proceedings of the 2019 ACM International Conference on Interactive Experiences for TV and Online Video, ACM
Story completion, methodological innovation, epistemology and social change: Matthew Wood in conversation with Celia Kitzinger, Kitzinger, C., Wood, M. 2 Jan 2019, In: Qualitative Research in Psychology
Design for sexual wellbeing in HCI, Kannabiran, G., Ahmed, A., Wood, M., Balaam, M., Tanenbaum, T., Bardzell, S., Bardzell, J. 20 Apr 2018, CHI 2018 - Extended Abstracts of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, ACM
"Protection on that erection?": Discourses of accountability & compromising participation in digital sexual health, Wood, M., Garbett, A., Morrissey, K., Hopkins, P., Balaam, M. 20 Apr 2018, CHI 2018 - Extended Abstracts of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, ACM
Talk about sex: Designing games to acilitate healthy discussions around sex, Wood, M., Wood, G., Balaam, M. 5 Oct 2015, CHI PLAY 2015 - Proceedings of the 2015 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play, ACM

PGR Supervision

Victoria Owen Working Title Start Date: 29/09/2025
William Imoukhuede Decolonising AI Design in Africa for Greater Cultural Sensitivity and Effectiveness Start Date: 29/09/2025
Sylvia Crow From Click to Commitment: Addressing Vulnarability and Complexity in Online Agreements with AI or Simplifying the Labyrinth: Leveraging AI to Support users in Understanding and Navigating Online Contracts Start Date: 29/09/2025
Faye Doughty Reclaiming AI-Powered Menstrual Tracking Apps: Towards Inclusive and Participatory Co-Design Practices Start Date: 23/09/2024
Yve Smith Exploring children’s visions for an AI-enabled education. Start Date: 23/09/2024 End Date: 13/11/2025
Allison Waxberg Exploring AI-Enhanced Ceramic Design:Collabarative Craft_Making to Foster Connection and Reduce Social Isolation Start Date: 29/09/2025
Angharad Pitty Influences of AI in Grieving Start Date: 23/09/2024 End Date: 15/01/2026
Christopher Corner Exploring AI’s Role in Intangible Heritage Through Research-through-Design in North East England Start Date: 23/09/2024
Christopher Jackson Empowering chronically ill students to shape the future of AI tools in higher education. Start Date: 29/09/2025
Bronte Rapps Heteronormativity in Language Models and its impact on queer citizens Start Date: 23/09/2024
John Robson Empowering Rural Communities by Integrating Explainable AI with Advanced Flood Prediction Models Start Date: 23/09/2024
Amy McCerery AI and Society Related Challenges – Health and Wellbeing Start Date: 23/09/2024 End Date: 03/12/2025
Xixiang Nie Working Title Start Date: 29/09/2025
Maureen Mwadime From Principles to Practice: Tailoring Explainable AI (XAI) Governance for Healthcare Professionals and Consumers through Societal Values of Fairness, Privacy and Transparency Start Date: 29/09/2025
Louise Forster Effective prevention and detection of economic crime by Companies House using artificial intelligence (‘AI’). Start Date: 29/09/2025
Joella Lynch The role of the teacher in the Age of AI: An exploration at the intersection of teachers’ professional practice and AIED tools Start Date: 23/09/2024
Grace Handley AI in Policing and its impact on TGNC communities Start Date: 23/09/2024
Rochelle Campbell-Esen AI, Religious Identity, and Online Safety: A Multi-Faith Participatory Design Approach Start Date: 23/09/2024