Housewives or technophiles?

• DOI: 10.1145/1349822.1349840
• Publication Date: 2008-03-12T22:35:48Z
• Authors: Ja-Young Sung; Rebecca E. Grinter; Henrik I. Christe...; Lan Guo
• Keywords: 0209 industrial biotechnology; 11. Sustainability; 02 engineering and technology

Despite the growing body of Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) research focused on domestic robots, surprisingly little is known about the demographic profile of robot owners and their influence on usage patterns. In this paper, we present the results of a survey of 379 iRobot's Roomba™ owners, that identified their demographic and usage trends. The outcome of the survey suggests that Roomba users are equally likely to be men or women, and they tend to be younger with high levels of education and technical backgrounds. Their adoption and use patterns illustrate the important role that gift exchange plays in adoption, and how the robot changes cleaning routines and creates non-cleaning activities. More generally, we argue that domestic robot adoption is growing, and suggest some of the factors that lead to a positive experience.