Have you heard of the “male technologist” mindset? It may sound familiar, and you may even know such people personally.
Design researchers Turkka Keinonen and Nils Ehrenberg
have defined the male technologist as someone who is obsessed with concerns about energy, efficiency and reducing labour.
This archetype became apparent in my PhD research when I interviewed 12 families about their use of early domestic robots and smart home devices Amazon Alexa and Google Home. One father over-engineered his smart home so much, his kids struggled to turn the lights on and off.
The male technologist in the home, as seen in my research, reflects wider trends of the Silicon Valley “tech bro” archetype, the techno-patriarchy, and the growing influence of a tech oligarchy…