Child location-based tracking technology: an investigation of its (non-) adoption and its social implications

( Human Computer Interaction (old) Series )

Anne-Marie Oostveen, Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford

Date and time: Tuesday 7th May 2013 at 16:00
Location: Learning Centre UG06
Host: Asimina Vasalou

Real-time tracking of individuals has become relatively easy with the widespread availability of commercial wearable devices that use geographical positioning information to provide location-based services. One application of this technology is to allow parents to monitor the location of their children. In this presentation I shall explore two issues related to child-location tracking devices.

In the first part of the presentation I shall discuss the actual use of these services in the UK (based on a large-scale representative survey among 920 parents), showing that parental values related to the possible long-term negative consequences of commercial child-tracking devices play a major part in the non-adoption of location-based services. The fact that only a small fraction of parents are in favour of location tracking, suggests that both designers and marketers have insufficiently addressed the values of parenthood.

The second part of the presentation investigates child location tracking technology in the US and the UK and compares its social implications. By analysing websites selling tracking devices we identify common and distinct features between the two countries. Although overall the price levels and the technical capabilities are the same, we find that the features of the technology differ between the US and the UK. This can be attributed to national regulations and law that shape how a technology can be used. These laws and regulations, influenced by cultural frameworks, values, and morality, differ considerably between the countries. The results of our study show that: (i) Wearable child location tracking technology has privacy, trust and security implications; (ii) Features of child tracking applications are dependent on the social contexts in which the devices are developed; and (iii) Compared to the UK, US legislation gives providers freedom to design more privacy-intrusive features.