research-article

Balancing human agency and object agency: an end-user interview study of the internet of things

Authors:

Haiyan Jia,

Mu Wu,

Eunhwa Jung,

Alice Shapiro,

S. Shyam SundarAuthors Info & Claims

UbiComp '12: Proceedings of the 2012 ACM Conference on Ubiquitous Computing

Pages 1185 - 1188

https://doi.org/10.1145/2370216.2370470

Published: 05 September 2012 Publication History

Get Access

Abstract

Advances in the field of the Internet of Things (IoT) have made it possible for everyday objects to attain agency. However, it is unclear how laypersons perceive the increasingly active artifacts. These perceptions are likely to foreground their future responses to IoT objects as they become relevant actors in the physical world and begin to influence everyday user experience. We conducted an in-depth interview study to investigate individuals' knowledge, attitudes, expectations and concerns relating to IoT technologies. Findings show that affordances such as interactivity and modality can be reconceptualized in order to enhance user perceptions of relatedness with the objects. Different from technology-centric and user-centric approaches, the paper suggests a balance between human agency and object agency by adopting a need-oriented design paradigm when building an integral, self-adjusting, user-relevant archetype of IoT.

References

[1]

Bandura, A. Social cognitive theory: An argentic perspective. Annual Review of Psychology 52 (2001), 1--26.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[2]

Criel, J., Vanderhulst, G., Kawsar, F., and Trappeniers. L. A co-creation platform for creative engagement of end-users in a connected object space. In Proc. NoME-IoT '11, ACM Press (2011), 9--14.

Digital Library

Google Scholar

[3]

Deci, E. L. and Ryan, R. M. The "what" and "why" of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry 11 (2000), 227--268.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[4]

Gulati, V. Thingbook: A user created Internet of Things. https://webfiles.uci.edu/vgulati/ThingBook_GulatiVrishti.pdf

Google Scholar

[5]

International Telecommunication Union. Internet report: The Internet of things. http://www.itu.int/osg/spu/publications/internetofthings.

Google Scholar

[6]

Kröner, A., Brandherm, B., and Schneider, M. Investigating communication needs of digital object memories for user interaction. In Proc. NoME-IoT '11, ACM Press (2011), 15--16.

Digital Library

Google Scholar

[7]

Marathe, S. Control and agency customization video games: A theoretical approach to learning outcomes. International Communication Association (2008).

Google Scholar

[8]

Nass, C., Lombard, M., Henriksen, L., and Steuer, J. Anthropocentrism and computers. Behaviour and Information Technology 14, 4(1995), 229--238.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[9]

Nass, C., Steuer, J., and Tauber, E. R. Computers are social actors. In Proc. CHI '94, ACM Press (1994), 72--78.

Digital Library

Google Scholar

[10]

Sundar, S. S. Self as source: Agency and customization in interactive media. International Communication Association (2006).

Google Scholar

[11]

Sundar, S. S., and Nass, C. Conceptualizing sources in online news. Journal of Communication 51, 1(2001), 52--72.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[12]

Tollmar, K. Dual media design: Sharing memories through digital object. In Proc. DOME-IoT 2010, ACM Press (2010).

Google Scholar

Cited By

View all

Diefenbach SUllrich DLindermayer TIsaksen K(2024)Responsible Automation: Exploring Potentials and Losses through Automation in Human–Computer Interaction from a Psychological PerspectiveInformation10.3390/info1508046015:8(460)Online publication date: 2-Aug-2024
https://doi.org/10.3390/info15080460
Toivonen HLelli F(2024)The Varieties of Agency in Human–Smart Device Relationships: The Four Agency ProfilesFuture Internet10.3390/fi1603009016:3(90)Online publication date: 7-Mar-2024
https://doi.org/10.3390/fi16030090
Obreja D(2024)Bridging awareness and resistance: Using algorithmic knowledge against controversial contentBig Data & Society10.1177/2053951724129604611:4Online publication date: 10-Nov-2024
https://doi.org/10.1177/20539517241296046
Show More Cited By

Index Terms

Balancing human agency and object agency: an end-user interview study of the internet of things
1. Human-centered computing

Recommendations

Feeling connected to smart objects? A moderated mediation model of locus of agency, anthropomorphism, and sense of connectedness
Highlights
- User-agency elicits more positive responses from IoT users than object-agency.
- ...
Abstract
In human-IoT interaction, both users and smart objects can exercise agency. This study examines how the relationship between the locus of agency (user vs. object) and interaction outcomes is mediated through sense of connectedness and ...
Enhancing agency through information: a phenomenographic exploration of young people's political information experiences
ASIST '16: Proceedings of the 79th ASIS&T Annual Meeting: Creating Knowledge, Enhancing Lives through Information & Technology

This paper reports the findings of research into young people's experiences of political information. We used a phenomenographic approach to identify variations in experiences of political information. The research explores how young people use ...
Rural Political Agency and Local Politics in Globalized Market

Comments

Information & Contributors

Information

Published In

UbiComp '12: Proceedings of the 2012 ACM Conference on Ubiquitous Computing

September 2012

1268 pages

ISBN:9781450312240

DOI:10.1145/2370216

General Chair:
Anind K. Dey
Carnegie Mellon University
,
Program Chairs:
Hao-Hua Chu
National Taiwan University, Taiwan
,
Gillian Hayes
University of California, Irvine

Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than ACM must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected]

In-Cooperation

SIGSPATIAL: ACM Special Interest Group on Spatial Information

Publisher

Association for Computing Machinery

New York, NY, United States

Publication History

Published: 05 September 2012

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Request Permissions

Check for updates

Author Tags

Qualifiers

Research-article

Conference

Ubicomp '12

Sponsor:

Ubicomp '12: The 2012 ACM Conference on Ubiquitous Computing

September 5 - 8, 2012

Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh

Acceptance Rates

UbiComp '12 Paper Acceptance Rate 58 of 301 submissions, 19%;

Overall Acceptance Rate 764 of 2,912 submissions, 26%

Contributors

Other Metrics

View Article Metrics

Bibliometrics & Citations

Bibliometrics

Article Metrics

34
Total Citations
View Citations
1,320
Total Downloads

Downloads (Last 12 months)85
Downloads (Last 6 weeks)7

Reflects downloads up to 01 Mar 2025

Other Metrics

View Author Metrics

Citations

Cited By

View all

Diefenbach SUllrich DLindermayer TIsaksen K(2024)Responsible Automation: Exploring Potentials and Losses through Automation in Human–Computer Interaction from a Psychological PerspectiveInformation10.3390/info1508046015:8(460)Online publication date: 2-Aug-2024
https://doi.org/10.3390/info15080460
Toivonen HLelli F(2024)The Varieties of Agency in Human–Smart Device Relationships: The Four Agency ProfilesFuture Internet10.3390/fi1603009016:3(90)Online publication date: 7-Mar-2024
https://doi.org/10.3390/fi16030090
Obreja D(2024)Bridging awareness and resistance: Using algorithmic knowledge against controversial contentBig Data & Society10.1177/2053951724129604611:4Online publication date: 10-Nov-2024
https://doi.org/10.1177/20539517241296046
Oh JKim WKim SIm HLee S(2024)Better to Ask Than Assume: Proactive Voice Assistants’ Communication Strategies That Respect User Agency in a Smart Home EnvironmentProceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3613904.3642193(1-17)Online publication date: 11-May-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3642193
Dong YWu Y(2024)Interacting with Healthcare Chatbot: Effects of Status Cues and Message Contingency on AI Credibility AssessmentInternational Journal of Human–Computer Interaction10.1080/10447318.2024.2387396(1-13)Online publication date: 9-Aug-2024
https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2024.2387396
Jia HAppelman AWu MBien-Aime S(2024)News bylines and perceived AI authorship: Effects on source and message credibilityComputers in Human Behavior: Artificial Humans10.1016/j.chbah.2024.100093(100093)Online publication date: Oct-2024
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbah.2024.100093
Scott ANeumann DNiess JWoźniak P(2023)Do You Mind? User Perceptions of Machine ConsciousnessProceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3544548.3581296(1-19)Online publication date: 19-Apr-2023
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3544548.3581296
Huh JKim HLee G(2023)“Oh, happy day!” Examining the role of AI-powered voice assistants as a positive technology in the formation of brand loyaltyJournal of Research in Interactive Marketing10.1108/JRIM-10-2022-032817:5(794-812)Online publication date: 14-Apr-2023
https://doi.org/10.1108/JRIM-10-2022-0328
Ystgaard KAtzori LPalma DHeegaard PBertheussen LJensen MDe Moor K(2023)Review of the theory, principles, and design requirements of human-centric Internet of Things (IoT)Journal of Ambient Intelligence and Humanized Computing10.1007/s12652-023-04539-314:3(2827-2859)Online publication date: 4-Feb-2023
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12652-023-04539-3
Kang HKim KWang S(2022)Can the Internet of Things Persuade Me? An Investigation Into Power Dynamics in Human-Internet of Things InteractionFrontiers in Psychology10.3389/fpsyg.2022.88311013Online publication date: 28-Jun-2022
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.883110
Show More Cited By

View Options

Login options

Check if you have access through your login credentials or your institution to get full access on this article.

Full Access

Get this Publication

View options

PDF

View or Download as a PDF file.

PDF

eReader

View online with eReader.

eReader

Cited By

Index Terms

Recommendations

Feeling connected to smart objects? A moderated mediation model of locus of agency, anthropomorphism, and sense of connectedness

Enhancing agency through information: a phenomenographic exploration of young people's political information experiences

Rural Political Agency and Local Politics in Globalized Market