Computing and Information Systems - Theses
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ItemTechnology at family mealtimes( 2017)In this research, I investigate the potential role of information and communication technologies during domestic mealtimes. The research aims to: 1. Examine the everyday interactions of familial uses of technology around mealtimes and investigate how family members configure the dining space and the technologies within it. 2. Understand how technologies are used and negotiated amongst family members and the influence of these technologies on the content and context of their interactions. 3. Investigate how the everyday technologies can be used to enhance the familial experience of eating together and create new experiences for togetherness in this space. In the first study, I conducted an ethnographic observation of six families as they use technology in their dining space. The findings from this study show how technologies are integrated into the mealtime activities in a dynamic fashion and provide a balanced account of the affordances and challenges of technology usage during family mealtimes. This study reveals certain circumstances in which background technologies come to the foreground, visible devices are hidden, unwanted distractions become desired, and ordinary technologies support celebratory occasions. I identify four patterns of arranging technologies and family members around the dinner table and discuss how technologies contribute to satiety and commensality. The findings from this study also show that a technology does not require being special or separate from the ordinary technology used in everyday life to support the special occasions in the family, rather it achieves this feat through its usage in special ways. So, my objective for the next studies was to look beyond this ordinary, elaborate on how these technologies are playing a role in our everyday life, and how we can support augmenting the experience of togetherness during family mealtimes. In the second study, I developed a technology probe TableTalk to investigate how the personal communication devices (e.g., phones, tables, etc.) can be used in social settings to facilitate familial interactions. I discuss how technology that is sensitive to the needs of family interactions can augment the commensal experience in the family. In the third study, I built upon this and conclude this research by investigating how the experience of using these personal technologies are different from regular mealtimes and what are the challenges for long time usage and adoption of such technologies in the family home. I hope that the findings from this research will contribute to better understand the evolving technology space in the domestic settings and how these technologies can enhance the shared experience of eating together. Technology usage during mealtimes is traditionally viewed as impeding social interaction at family mealtimes. However, this research demonstrates how technologies can support, enhance, and augment social interactions, mediate usage, and resolve tension among the family members during mealtimes.