Published research on smart homes and their
users is growing exponentially, yet a clear understanding of
who these users are and how they might use smart home
technologies is missing from a field being overwhelmingly
pushed by technology developers. Through a systematic
analysis of peer-reviewed literature on smart homes and
their users, this paper takes stock of the dominant research
themes and the linkages and disconnects between them.
Key findings within each of nine themes are analysed,
grouped into three: (1) views of the smart home—functional,
instrumental, socio-technical; (2) users and the use
of the smart home—prospective users, interactions and
decisions, using technologies in the home; and (3) challenges
for realising the smart home—hardware and software,
design, domestication. These themes are integrated
into an organising framework for future research that
identifies the presence or absence of cross-cutting relationships
between different understandings of smart homes
and their users. The usefulness of the organising framework
is illustrated in relation to two major concerns—
privacy and control—that have been narrowly interpreted
to date, precluding deeper insights and potential solutions.
Future research on smart homes and their users can benefit
by exploring and developing cross-cutting relationships
between the research themes identified.