Variety within domestication research: time, perceptions and interactions

The rich variety of domestication research in part comes from choices about which aspects of people’s lives are to be examined and in the detail of how this is managed within particular studies. This chapter aims to demonstrate some of the diversity within this body of literature and the further potential of this framework for those thinking about using this approach. It does so through a focus on three dimensions: time issues that have a bearing upon how the digital world is experienced, the perceptions of people when they are evaluating ICTs and interactions with others both within and outside the home that influence people’s digital practices. Although to varying degrees these dimensions were addressed or implicit in early domestication texts, there is now much more research to support their elaboration. After examining how a range of recent domestication studies have touched upon these three themes, three additional objects of study are considered as think pieces for reflecting on further potential questions. These are wearable electronic devices for measuring fitness, educational apps for very young children and new digital practices that people explored because of the coronavirus lockdown