Lifelogging technologies have the potential to facilitate and enrich the everyday life of younger as well as older people. On the one hand, tracking and logging of data about activities and behavior support an active lifestyle. On the other hand, tracking medical data and movements support increasing safety by detecting, e.g., emer-gencies or falls. From a technical perspective, a variety of technologies enable lifelogging and are already available on the market. Instead, there is very little knowledge about the perception and acceptance of lifelog-ging technologies from users’ socio-ethical perspective. Hence, this paper presents research results from four online survey studies (n = 1107) aiming at covering a broad range of lifelogging applications and reaching di-verse target groups. Being based on insights gathered from the quantitative data collection, this paper derives guidelines for integrating ethical and social perspectives in lifelogging technology development and emphasiz-es gaps within the research landscape regarding its perception and acceptance.

An increasing proportion of older people in need of care presents one of the major challenges within demographic change. The development of Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) technologies is one option to face the challenges of rising care needs. Beyond technical and economic aspects, the acceptance of diverse stakeholders plays a major role for a successful implementation and rollout of those technologies. In particular, it is questionable whether and to which extent the use of assisting technologies is accepted in professional care contexts, in particular with respect to gathering and storage of data. Thus, the current study aimed for an investigation of professional caregivers’ perspectives on the acceptance of AAL technologies in professional care contexts. In a scenario-based online questionnaire, n = 287 professional caregivers evaluated perceived benefits, barriers, and acceptance of AAL technologies. Also, they indicated which data can be gathered and which specific technologies should be used to gather data. Further, data access and data storage were also under study. The results showed a reserved and critical attitude of professional caregivers towards using AAL technologies in their everyday working life and allow to analyze trade-offs between permitted gathered data and specific requested technologies in depth.

The chapter was indvertently published with the incorrect author name information “Martina Zielfe”. This has been corrected as “Martina Ziefle”.

Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU) has the potential to limit or reduce atmospheric releases of carbon dioxide (CO2) and replace fossil resource use by providing – among other utilization routes - saleable plastics. Apart from technical, environmental, or economic aspects in the development of eco-innovative technologies such as carbon capture and utilization and its products, the public perception and acceptance of carbon-derived products need to be considered as decisive factors for a successful deployment of carbon capture and utilization. Thus, this study aimed for an investigation of perception and acceptance of a product example (a foam mattress) of carbon capture and utilization among potential customers. Methodologically, an online survey was run to measure the acceptance of carbon-derived products, to segment subgroups, and to analyze the impact of individual factors on perception and acceptance of carbon-derived products. Findings revealed an overall positive perception of the carbon capture and utilization technology and the carbon-derived mattress as product example. Three subsegments of respondents, differing according to their willingness to buy and use a carbon-derived foam mattress, were identified based on individual attitudes and perceptions of carbon-derived foam mattresses. Environmental awareness, risk perceptions (health, sustainability), and socio-demographic factors played an important role in explaining differences among adoption subgroups according to carbon-derived product perception and acceptance. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of sustainable technology and product acceptance and underline the importance of integrating individual factors into acceptance evaluations. They can be used to inform science and industry about substantial acceptance factors and adoption subgroups before eco-innovative products reach the market. This way, public perceptions can be timely integrated into the product development process of sustainable products and the development of communication strategies.

The omnipresence and familiarity of textiles in combination with the integration of invisible sensors, actuators, and information and communication technology under the term “interactive digital textiles” offer the potential of bridging the gap between age, the aging-population, and latest information and communication technology. Digital textiles are reaching maturity and first technology augmented cloths are becoming commercially available. However, little is known about the acceptance and projected use of digital textiles for/in home environments and whether acceptance is shaped by age, gender, expertise in interacting with technology, or other aspects of user diversity. In a survey with n=136 participants, we identified and quantified factors that influence the adoption and rejection of a smart cushion as example for digital textiles. We found that attitude towards technology and attitude towards automation are decisive for the projected acceptance, while age plays a minor role. In addition, we provide a customer segmentation based on the projected use and provide detailed descriptions of adopters and rejecters as well as their model-based evaluations of the smart interactive cushion. The article concludes with open research questions and strategies for practitioners to leverage smart textile interfaces as basis for many innovative products in the future.

The use of Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) technologies presents one option to face the challenges of recent and rising care needs due to demographic change. User acceptance of those technologies plays a major role for a successful rollout and sustainable technology usage. Empirical research approaches (e.g., online questionnaires) in this area are often impersonal and abstract for the participants. In contrast, the current study aimed for a playful qualitative user study approach in which people empathize with different necessities of support and evaluate desired technologies and respective usage motives as well as barriers. The paper presents first research results of the new undertaken research approach, which was tested with six older participants (aged between 50 and 81 years of age). The results show that the playful approach enables a personal assessment of different assistive technologies and technology-related usage motives and barriers when a prototype testing is not feasible.

To face the challenges of increasing care needs due to demographic change, the development of smart home and Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) technologies present one approach, which is continuously forwarded. Besides aspects of technical development and implementation, user acceptance of diverse stakeholders plays a major role for a successful rollout and sustainable adoption of those technologies. So far, user acceptance research in this context has concentrated mostly on age-related issues. In contrast, disabilities and related care needs have hardly been researched yet. The current study focused on persons having different experiences with disabilities and care needs. In a qualitative interview pre-study (n = 9) and a follow-up quantitative online questionnaire study (n = 279) perceived benefits and barriers, use conditions, and acceptance of AAL technologies were contrasted. Four user groups were under study: disabled participants, relatives of disabled persons, professional caregivers, and, as a control group, persons without experience with disabilities. Results indicate that disabled and care-needy people show a higher acceptance and intention to use an AAL system than not-experienced people and especially professional caregivers. The motives for acceptance and rejection differ strongly regarding user diversity as well. The results contribute to a better understanding of user-specific acceptance of smart home and AAL technologies and show that the integration of diverse user groups into the technologies' design and evaluation process is necessary.

Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) technologies present one approach facing the challenges of recent and rising care needs due to demographic changes in western societies. Beside the technological implementation, the focus on user acceptance of all stakeholders plays a major role for a successful rollout. As most research deals with age-related issues, this paper emphasizes especially on the sector of disabled persons. In a qualitative interview pre-study (n=9) and a validating questionnaire study (n=279) the perceived benefits and barriers of AAL technologies were contrasted in four user groups: healthy "not-experienced" people, disabled, their relatives, and professional care givers. Results indicate that disabled and care-needy people show a higher acceptance and intention to use an AAL system than "not-experienced" people or care givers and that the motives for use and non-use differ strongly with regard to user diversity as well. The results show the importance to integrate diverse user groups (age, disabilities) into the design and evaluation process of AAL technologies.

Ubiquitous computing strives to reach the calm computing state where sensors and actuators disappear from the foreground of our surroundings into the fabric of everyday objects. Despite the great progress in embedded technology, artificial interfaces, such as remote controls and touch screens, remain the dominant media for interacting with smart everyday objects. Motivated by recent advancements in smart textile technologies, we investigate the usability and acceptance of fabric-based controllers in the smart home environment. In this article we describe the development and evaluation of three textile interfaces for controlling a motorized recliner armchair in a living room setting. The core of this contribution is the empirical study with twenty participants that contrasted the user experience of three textile-based interaction techniques to a standard remote control. Despite the slightly lower reliability of the textile interfaces, their overall acceptance was higher. The study shows that the hedonic quality and attractiveness of textile interfaces have higher impact on user acceptance compared to pragmatic qualities, such as efficiency, fluidity of interaction, and reliability. Attractiveness profits from the direct and nearly invisible integration of the interaction device into textile objects such as furniture.

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) and carbon dioxide utilization (CDU) are increasingly discussed by actors from industry, politics, and science as option to mitigate climate change. Apart from reducing emissions, using CDU CO2 can substitute fossil resources during the production of new plastic products, e.g., mattresses of polyurethane foam. To date, there has been virtually no systematic research on public perceptions concerning CDU for manufacturing plastics, i.e., whether future users accept such products. Thus, this qualitative interview study examined CDU acceptance regarding different plastic products and analyzed laypersons’ perceptions and needs in comparison with attitudes and perspectives of scientific experts.

Carbon dioxide utilization (CDU) has the potential to contribute to global CO2 emission reduction efforts. Research and developmental activities mainly focused on technical feasibility so far, neglecting the public perception and acceptance of the CDU technology and its products. Therefore, this study focused on the conceptualization and quantification of CDU risk perception and acceptance. First, qualitative focus group discussions were run, where the sub-dimensions of CDU-product-associated risks were determined (health-, product quality-, environmental-, and sustainability risks). Second, in a quantitative online survey, the impact of single CDU risk sub-dimensions on general CDU risk perception was quantified and related to CDU product acceptance. CDU risk perceptions, which were mainly determined by health- and environmental risks, were low and CDU acceptance positive. Individual differences (gender, technical self-efficacy, level of information) in CDU risk perceptions were identified and guidelines for a successful rollout and communication of CDU products were derived.

Currently, surveillance technologies are increasingly used to give people a sense of safety in medical as well as crime surveillance contexts. On the one hand, perceived safety can be supported by adequate surveillance technologies (e.g., cameras), however, the systematic use of surveillance technologies undermines individual privacy needs on the other hand. In this empirical study, we explore users’ perceptions on safety and privacy in the context of surveillance systems. In order to understand if the acceptance of surveillance depends on usage contexts, surveillance technologies in the urban were compared to the medical context. Using an online survey, 119 users were requested to indicate their acceptance regarding different types of surveillance contexts and technologies, differentiating perceived benefits and barriers as well as safety and privacy needs. We investigate acceptance differences towards surveillance technologies at various locations (private and public) as well. In this paper, we especially explore the impact of different surveillance contexts, locations and individual perceived crime threat on the acceptance of surveillance technologies and on the needs for privacy and safety.

Smart interactive textiles are the next frontier of ubiquitous computing and may serve as novel and accepted interfaces that go beyond conventional human-computer interaction. Apart from the technical perspective, it is important to understand if and under which conditions people adopt these technologies and which factors constitute perceived barriers of technology acceptance. In this work we examine people’s attitudes towards smart textiles and their relationship to the intention to use these products in their home environment. This article provides a precise modeling of younger and older people in regard to expertise in interacting with technology, their desire to control and automate functions in their home environment, and the evaluation of a smart cushion for controlling the home environment, using the Smart Textile Technology Acceptance Model that is derived from the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 model. This model was applied for a specific smart textile product and the evaluation was focused on user-diversity, attitudes, and age. The article concludes with open research questions and guidelines for practitioners to leverage the benefits of smart textile user interfaces.

Global warming is a central threat for today's society caused by greenhouse gas emissions, mostly carbon dioxide emissions. Carbon dioxide capture and utilization (CCU) is a promising approach to reduce emissions and the use of expensive and limited fossil resources. Applying CCU, carbon dioxide (CO2) can be incorporated as raw material during the manufacture of plastic products. While most of the studies address technical feasibilities, hardly any systematic research on public perception and acceptance of those specific products exists so far. This study empirically investigates the acceptance of CCU plastic products (mattress as example). First, interviews with experts and lay people revealed critical acceptance factors (CO2 proportion, saving of fossil resources, disposal conditions, perceived health complaints). Their relative importance was detailed in two consecutive conjoint studies. Study 1 revealed disposal conditions and saving of fossil resources as essential for product selection, while the products’ CO2 proportion was less important. In study 2, potential health complaints were integrated as well as individual levels of domain knowledge and risk perception, which significantly affected acceptance of CCU products. Recommendations concerning communication strategies for policy and industry were derived.

Smart Interactive Textiles combine the warmth and omnipresence of textiles in our everyday lives with the benefits of modern information and communication technologies. The potential of innovation is not only based on technical ingenuity, but also on the consideration and embedding of peoples’ fears, requirements, desires, and wishes regarding these innovative technologies. Thus, the development of smart interactive textiles requires the expertise of various disciplines. Foremost, appropriate conductive yarns must be selected and integrated into conventional fabrics. Sensors and actuators must be embedded in textiles in a way that they could be used as a user interface. The design of these textiles should meet human needs and should enable an intuitive, easy to learn, and effective interaction. To meet these requirements, potential users should be part of the development and evaluation processes of innovative smart textiles. In this article, we present a research framework that integrates several interdisciplinary perspectives (interface design, textile technology, integration and automation, communication and human factors). We realized three functional smart textile demonstrators (curtain, chair, jacket). We report on the results of this interdisciplinary research project as well as the research questions and key findings of the individual partners. In summary, this article demonstrates that interdisciplinary cooperation, user-centered and participatory design, and iterative product development are necessary for successful innovative technologies.

Surveillance technologies are used all over the world for various reasons. In urban environments, surveillance technologies are predominantly used for detecting or preventing crimes. Simultaneously, an increasing number of technologies are used for medical monitoring at home, but also at clinical facilities, and at public environments for assuring patients’ medical safety. An intensive policy discussion about perceived advantages (especially increasing safety) and perceived barriers (in particular the invasion of privacy) comes along with the use of surveillance technologies. In this paper, it is examined where and for which contexts the use of surveillance technologies is accepted and under which conditions safety or privacy is perceived as more important. We investigate the acceptance of surveillance technologies for medical and crime surveillance scenarios using a conjoint analysis approach including four relevant aspects: location of surveillance, increase in safety, invasion of privacy, and the applied camera type. Results show both, context independent findings as well as context-sensitive findings: e.g., for crime surveillance, the location is most important followed by the trade-off between privacy and safety, while these three factors are of similar importance for medical surveillance. From a practical viewpoint, the findings might contribute to a differentiated surveillance policy in cities.

Rising care needs, higher proportions of older, diseased, or disabled people, and an increasing deficiency of qualified care staff due to demographic changes are major challenges in western societies. Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) technologies represent one approach to face these challenges. Besides technological developments and implementations, focusing on user acceptance (including diverse stakeholder perspectives) is important for a successful rollout. As the most previous studies focus on age-related issues, this paper emphasizes especially on people with care needs due to a disability. In particular the acceptance of an AAL system is investigated considering the trade-off between perceived benefits (e.g., increasing autonomy) and perceived barriers (e.g., invasion in privacy, to "abandon" data security). Using a quantitative online questionnaire, decisive use conditions are identified, and the trade-offs and AAL-acceptance are evaluated comparing four user groups: "healthy people" without experiences with disabilities, disabled people, family members, and professional care givers. Results indicate that experience with disabilities influence the acceptance and relevant use conditions of AAL systems as well as the trade-offs between benefits and barriers. The results demonstrate the relevance to include diverse user groups (age, diseases, disabilities) and their specific needs and wishes into the design and evaluation process of AAL technologies.

Smart Interactive Textiles combine the warmth and omnipresence of textiles in our everyday lives with the benefits of modern information and communication technologies. The potential of innovation is not only based on technical ingenuity, but also on the consideration and embedding of peoples' fears, requirements, desires, and wishes regarding these innovative technologies. Thus, the development of smart interactive textiles requires the expertise of various disciplines. Foremost, appropriate conductive yarns must be selected and integrated into conventional fabrics. Sensors and actuators must be embedded in textiles in a way that they could be used as a user interface. The design of these textiles should meet human needs and should enable an intuitive, easy to learn, and effective interaction. To meet these requirements, potential users should be part of the development and evaluation processes of innovative smart textiles. In this article, we present a research framework that integrates several interdisciplinary perspectives (interface design, textile technology, integration and automation, communication and human factors). We realized three functional smart textile demonstrators (curtain, chair, jacket). We report on the results of this interdisciplinary research project as well as the research questions and key findings of the individual partners. In summary, this article demonstrates that interdisciplinary cooperation, user-centered and participatory design, and iterative product development are necessary for successful innovative technologies.

These days, surveillance technologies are a key component of smart and networked cities preventing or detecting crime and giving the residents a sense of safety. On the one hand, safety perceptions can be supported by adequate surveillance technologies (e.g., cameras), however on the other hand, the systematic use of surveillance technologies undermines individual privacy needs. In this empirical study, we explore users' perceptions on safety and privacy in the context of surveillance systems in urban environments. Using an online survey, 119 users were requested to indicate their acceptance regarding different types of surveillance technologies, differentiating perceived benefits and barriers as well as safety and privacy needs. Also, we investigate acceptance differences towards surveillance technologies at various locations (private and public). In this paper, we especially explore the impact of individual perceived crime threat on the acceptance of surveillance technologies and on the needs for privacy and safety.

This work was funded in part by the German B-IT Foundation and by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research as project “Intuitex” (Grant No. 16SV6264K).