Bitcoin is a crypto-currency which differs in several ways from the traditional use of money. It does not require an individual name but digital wallet IDs, which makes it more private. Bitcoin technology currently lacks protection with respect to monetary transfers, and its structure is not endorsed by the governments. Yet, understanding the concept of trust is fundamental to Bitcoin technology and digital currency economy. This paper offers a review of relevant work on cryptocurrency and trust in HCI, and critically examines its value in understanding the issues of trust in Bitcoin technology. Several limitations of the current theories and models of trust are identified, and a research framework is proposed to explore the specific trust challenges raised by the Bitcoin technology.
Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency which has received increasing interest over the last five years. Built upon a decentralized peer to peer system, it supports transparent, fast, cost effective, and irreversible transactions, without the need for trusting third party financial institutions. We know however little about people's motivation and experience with bitcoin currency. This paper reports on interviews with 20 bitcoin users about their experience and their trust challenges. Findings show that bitcoins are used more as commodities for speculative investment or savings' protection. The paper advances the HCI theories on trust by identifying main bitcoin characteristics and their impact on trust, such as decentralization, unregulation, embedded expertise, and reputation, as well as transactions' transparency, low cost, and easiness to complete. We also discuss the issue of insecure transactions and the associated risks, in particular the one of dishonest traders and its mitigating strategies. The paper concludes with three design implications including support for the transparency of two-way transactions, tools for materializing trust, and tools for supporting reversible transactions.
This paper presents an exploratory study focusing on user experience with Bitcoin technology. We describe interviews with 9 Bitcoin users and report findings related to users' motivations for buying and using bitcoins. Our initial findings capture three main motivations such as Bitcoin's predicted role in a monetary revolution, users' increased empowerment, and their perception of a real value of Bitcoin currency. We conclude with reflections on the value of these findings for HCI researchers.
Blockchain is a disruptive technology, which has significantly challenged assumptions that underpin financial institutions, and has provoked innovation strategies that have the potential to change many aspects of the digital economy. However, because of its novelty and complexity, mental models of blockchain technology are difficult to acquire. Building on embodied cognition theories and material centered-design, we report an innovative approach for the design of BlocKit, a physical three-dimensional kit for materializing blockchain infrastructure and its key entities. Through an engagement with different materials such as clay, paper, or transparent containers we identified important properties of these entities and materialized them through physical artifacts. BlocKit was evaluated by 15 experienced bitcoin users with findings indicating its value for their high level of engagement in communicating about, and designing for blockchain infrastructure. Our study advances an innovative approach for the design of such kits, an initial vocabulary to talk about them, and design implications intended to inspire HCI researchers to engage in designing for infrastructures.
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