Summary
This paper reported the results of a large-scale survey that investigated parents’ commercial location tracking adoption patterns and the values these technologies activate. In seeking to understand why families have not taken up location tracking, the study investigates the relationship between technology and social values; how it informs the design of these devices; with a particular focus on understanding the values the technology supports or threatens. This approach stems from the view, supported by some researchers, that, perhaps, commercial location tracking systems may have failed mostly because they have not adequately engaged robustly with the complex dynamics of family values.
Opinion
Much has been said about the virtues of location tracking technologies as tools for better parenting. But there are many good reasons why parents should be skeptical about location tracking technology; one of which, I believe, is the possibility dissociation – a disruption of the natural functionality of the home when parents enter the private spheres of their children. Thus the big question hanging over the design, application and adoption of this technology is not how the technology works, or how it is accepted by both parents and children – even less so the moral implications, but, instead, it should be how it alters the relationships between children and their parents. Future research should work towards addressing this problem.
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