The Power of Qualitative Methods: Aha Moments in Exploring Cybersecurity and Trust

This article outlines our experience as a multi-disciplinary team studying user perceptions of and experiences with cybersecurity. We trace our journey from mutual skepticism, to understanding, to acceptance using illustrations from our data. We also discuss our learning along the way—including the... See full abstract

This article outlines our experience as a multi-disciplinary team studying user perceptions of and experiences with cybersecurity. We trace our journey from mutual skepticism, to understanding, to acceptance using illustrations from our data. We also discuss our learning along the way—including the many “aha” moments we had. Certainly one of those aha moments was the realization that qualitative methods are an important and valuable tool for data collection and analysis in the cybersecurity space. Having now worked together on multiple qualitative studies, we believe sharing our story can help others who want to explore the use of qualitative methods in this space. We also offer a methodological roadmap for how to design and conduct rigorous qualitative studies that explore and examine the user experience of cybersecurity.
Hide full abstract