Aligning smart home technology attributes with users’ preferences: a literature review

Smart home technologies play a crucial role in reshaping the use of residential spaces, aspiring to enhance user experiences and foster a more efficient way of living. Assessing the state-of-the-art smart home technologies is essential for supporting their implementation and acceptance, particularly considering the rapid evolution within this field. This study, through a literature review, explores the taxonomy of smart home technology attributes, users’ preferences, and their alignment. The research reveals three primary themes of smart home attributes: technology, function, and user. Users’ preferences are categorized into functional aspects, value and benefits, social and cultural influences, ethical and responsible considerations, and user control and trust. The analysis shows disparities between some smart home technology attributes and users’ preferences, particularly in the dimensions of privacy, security and data usage, ethical consideration, social and environmental responsibility, cultural and demographic factors, trust, and social influence. Additionally, compatibility and cost of technology are often neglected. This paper contributes to the existing literature by presenting a taxonomy of smart home technology attributes and users’ preferences. We also call for a shift in design paradigms to ensure a more holistic integration of users’ preferences into smart home technologies.