Different communities understand and utilize technology differently. Cultural and social norms can influence how users perceive and interact with these technologies, and community standards may even prescribe or require restrictions on technologies’ functionality, particularly in an ever-more-connected world.
Associate Professor of Computer Science Adam Aviv is collaborating with Associate Professor Eran Toch from Tel Aviv University and Assistant Professor Oshrat Ayalon from the University of Haifa to explore how particular streams of ultra-orthodox Jewish communities understand and perceive security and privacy of technology and how it functions based on their communities’ standards.
Within the ultra-orthodox Jewish community, characterized by a strict adherence to religious law and tradition, a distinct technology ecosystem has developed. Some of the technologies include so-called “kosher phones,” which restrict features such as text messaging or internet access, and “kosher internet filter,” which blocks viewing of prohibited sites.
“The spirit of the project is that we used to think about these religious communities as not using technology, but they have actually created new technology, which is very interesting,” Aviv explained.
“They want to use the technology, and they want to use it on their own terms as it meets a religious standard as described by their personal, rabbinic, or community understanding,” said Aviv.
Aviv, Toch, and Ayalon are working to understand how these groups perceive, opt into, and use these technologies. The goal is not to change these groups’ practices but to understand and illuminate them. Understanding how communities self-regulate these technologies may play a role in how other institutions choose to enforce or encourage regulations.
Toch says: "What makes this technology so exciting is that it's built with completely different values in mind than the ones we mostly connect with digital technologies. It puts community and tradition at the center, but it does so in very inventive and resourceful ways. It’s really something different.”
The work is funded by a joint grant between the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the US-Israeli Binational Science Foundation (BSF) that encourages collaborative research projects between Israeli and American institutions. The GW portion of the grant is for $500,000 over a three-year period. The research will involve participants from the United States and Israel, exploring the distinct religious communities and security and privacy environments.
The team hopes the research will impact how we understand and perceive the use of technology in multiple contexts, including other religious communities and even amongst younger users.
“While we focus on the Jewish ultra-Orthodox community, the principles we will learn can be useful for designing technologies that fit other conservative communities,” said Ayalon.
“It’s useful to examine how we place limitations on technology and the impact of community access,” Aviv concluded.