This article argues that because the home is so familiar, it is necessary to make it strange, or defa- miliarize it, in order to open its design space.

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Making by making strange: Defamiliarization and the design of domestic technologies

G Bell, M Blythe, P Sengers (2005)

This paper reports the key findings of an ethnographic study of domestic technology in the home. The issues addressed include: the gendered division of domestic labour and gendered product design; the privatisation of domestic space through entertainment technologies; and the necessity of making mundane housework more enjoyable. The paper briefly describes the technology biography procedure that was used to gather data, outlines key design implications, and presents illustrative product suggestions, which are intended to inspire or provoke designers

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Notes towards an ethnography of domestic technology

M Blythe, A Monk (2002)

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The technology biography combines and adapts a number of qualitative data collection techniques to focus on past, present and possible future domestic technologies

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Technology biographies: field study techinques for home use product development

M Blythe, A Monk, J Park (2002)