Everyday Resilience: Supporting Resilient Strategies among Low Socioeconomic Status Communities

People experiencing financial hardship often possess resilient and resourceful behaviors when handling their day-to-day activities. Understanding how these individuals manifest resilience during adversity could provide insights into how technologies can support their existing efforts. In a partnership with an Australian community care center, we identified resilient practices of people with low socioeconomic status. Following a strength-based approach, we collected data via home visits and semi-structured interviews involving 14 participants, and observed activities at the care center over 8 months. Our participants exhibited three key facets of resilience: (1) resilience as an integral part of their everyday lives, (2) a spirited phenomenon, and (3) a social and care-focused process. We contribute empirical insights into our participants’ situated resilience and articulate ways through which design can support their existing social and collaborative practices. We compare and contrast our findings within and outside CSCW literature and advocate for a strength-based approach.