This paper builds on earlier CSCW studies of domestic technologies, looking at the frequent maintenance required by new security technologies that households are adopting to provide safety and security. It explores how the roles and responsibilities are allocated within a household to support these domestic routines. This paper reports a qualitative study of usage practices surrounding safety and security. It classifies three primary approaches to computer security in the home, and discusses how technical skill, household structure and gender relate to the approach selected, and discuss the transitory nature of such arrangements. Author Keywords Ethnography, Gender, Security ACM Classification Keywords H5.m. Information interfaces and presentation (e.g., HCI): Miscellaneous. General Terms Human Factors, Security, Theory.
Jennifer A. Rode