Dr. Madeline Balaam

Professor

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Biography

Madeline Balaam is a professor at KTH Royal Institute of Technology specializing in Interaction Design with a focus on health and wellbeing. Her research centers on the design and development of technologies that engage with people's everyday lives, emphasizing participatory and user-centered design methods. Over the past decade, she has focused on the design and study of intimate technologies—technological innovations that relate to intimate body parts and processes, as well as intimate relationships. Balaam leads a research group dedicated to exploring digital innovations that transform interactions with the intimate body, including projects like 'Menarche Bits', which re-imagines menstrual technologies, and 'Pelvic Chair', which examines the use of touch in intimate technologies. She has also worked on the user-generated app 'FeedFinder', which supports breastfeeding mothers by providing tools to find and review public breastfeeding locations. Her work has resulted in a unique dataset capturing women's experiences with breastfeeding in public spaces, published in BMJ Open. Balaam's contributions have been recognized with awards, including a best paper award at CHI 2016 for her research on mobile technologies that raise women's knowledge of intimate anatomy. Before joining KTH, she was a research fellow at the Interaction Lab at the University of Sussex.

Research Interests

Experience

Professor

2016-01-01 — Present

KTH Royal Institute of Technology • Stockholm, Sweden

Conducting research in Interaction Design, focusing on health and wellbeing, and mentoring students.

Research Fellow

2015-01-01 — 2016-01-01

Interaction Lab, University of Sussex • Brighton, UK

Worked on projects related to pervasive computing and emotional experiences in learning contexts.

Courses

Degree Project Media Technology, Cycle (DM128X) Interdisciplinary Perspectives HCI (FDM3001) User Experience Design Evaluation (DM2630)

Requirements for KTH Royal Institute of Technology

Master Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3
IELTS
Listening
Required:5.5
Reading
Required:5.5
Writing
Required:5.5
Speaking
Required:5.5
Overall
Required:6.5
TOEFL
Listening
Required:0
Reading
Required:0
Writing
Required:20
Speaking
Required:0
Total
Required:90
PTE
Listening
Required:0
Reading
Required:0
Writing
Required:62
Speaking
Required:0
Overall
Required:62
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree (180 ECTS) in Science, Engineering, or a related field. Specific course requirements vary by department (e.g., Mathematics, Programming, or Subject-specific credits).
Application Checklist
  • Certificates and diplomas of completed degree
  • Transcript of records
  • Proof of English proficiency
  • Copy of passport or ID
  • Curriculum Vitae (CV)
  • Letter of Motivation
  • Letters of Recommendation (if required by program)
  • Summary of Project (if required)
Specialization Notes

Master's programs are organized under Schools; departments listed are units within these schools (e.g., EECS, ABE, CBH, ITM, SCI).