It Shouldn’t Be This Difficult: Researcher Perspectives on Diversity and Inclusion in Usable Privacy and Security Research

Abstract

While recent usable privacy and security (UPS) research has made progress in moving beyond “the average user,” a systematic account of how UPS researchers navigate diversity and inclusion in their work remains lacking. Through 20 in-depth semi-structured interviews with experienced researchers, we examine how and why they recruit diverse, underserved populations in their work, as well as the challenges they face in doing so, including conceptual difficulties in defining who is underserved, limited access to target populations, and inflexible peer review and publishing norms. Participants also reflected on their own positionality when planning and conducting studies, often expressing uncertainty about how to account for and articulate their positionality. We identify strategies researchers use to overcome challenges and highlight areas where collective action from the research community and institutions is needed to foster greater inclusion in UPS research practices.