As the number of households that contain smart devices proliferate, users will become increasingly reliant on such devices for home automation, safety, and convenience. Typically, the setup and administration of these devices are done by a single person, yet the use and care of our homes rarely involves just one person. Multiple people may live in a home, family and friends visit, house cleaners and contractors help with maintenance, and neighbors keep an eye out for emergencies. In other words, there are potentially many people who have a stake in the well-being of the home and its occupants, and each may benefit from the affordances of smart home devices. There is still limited research examining how smart home devices can be used and shared amongst this community of people. Hence, in this study, we seek to understand the range of potential uses for this remote sharing, as well as the needs for homeowners to monitor and control such access. Our research questions include:

​

RQ1: Are smart home users interested in sharing their devices with people who do not live with them? If so, with whom?
RQ2: What devices and capabilities do smart home users want to share with people who do not live with them?
RQ3: For what purpose are smart home users interested in sharing their devices with people who do not live with them?
RQ4: For smart home users who already share their devices with people who do not live with them, what are their experiences and unmet needs for sharing?