A Modest Art: Securing Privacy in Technologically Mediated Homecare.

Area of Science:

• Science and Technology Studies
• Sociology of Technology
• Ethics of Technology

Background:

• Technological culture necessitates active engagement with technomoral change.
• Adaptation to new technologies often occurs through subtle, practical adjustments rather than overt deliberation.
• Understanding the lived experience of technology integration is crucial for navigating societal shifts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the 'art of living' in a technological culture as a form of active engagement with technomoral change.
• To demonstrate how engagement with technology is reflected in everyday practices and pragmatic problem-solving.
• To explore how individuals re-articulate values when encountering new technologies in their work.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative analysis of the integration of tele-monitoring technology in homecare settings.
• Examination of "reflection-in-action" as a key mechanism for adapting technology.
• Case study focusing on homecare workers' experiences with privacy and new technology.

Main Results:

• Engagement with technology is often a modest, experimental process of fitting new tools into existing practices.
• Challenged values, such as privacy, are re-articulated through pragmatic solutions developed during use.
• The primary aim is not self-transformation but securing good, relational practices in a technologically mediated environment.

Conclusions:

• The 'art of working with technology' is a relational practice focused on maintaining good relationships amidst technological change.
• Homecare workers' engagement with tele-monitoring illustrates how practical adaptation reconfigures values like privacy.
• Living in a technological culture involves continuous, modest adjustments and re-articulations of values in action.