Habib, Laurence

Computers and the Family: a study of technology in the domestic sphere

(2000)

This thesis is concerned with understanding computers within the context of the family and family life, and the uses and roles they play within the domestic sphere.

The thesis starts with a review of the relevant literature from a variety of social science disciplines including information systems, media studies and sociology. This allows the identification of prominent research themes that are used to build a research framework for empirical work. The study explores the role of home computers, addressing four key elements of family life - paid work, education, leisure and family duties. The research focuses on issues of time, space and budget, with a particular attention to the issues of negotiation and intergenerational or gendered conflict.

The research takes an interpretive approach. The empirical work consists of a series of in-depth interviews with families, exploring their individual and collective attitudes to and experience with computers. Both the data collection and the subsequent analysis make use of ethnographic techniques. The analysis is focused around the existence of various symbolisms attached to the notion of home computing, and investigates the implications of conflicting perspectives on the role and status of the computer within a same family.

In the final section, the original framework is revisited to incorporate the findings derived from the empirical work. In this, the revealed processes of domestication are presented, processes that serve to transform an undomestic and alien technological object into one that is incorporated into family life.

Read the full thesis: Computers and the Family: a study of technology in the domestic sphere (PDF)

Supervisor: Tony Cornford, PhD

Laurence Habib is professor in and chair of the Department of Computer Science at Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences , Norway.

Laurence Habib's personal web page.