Home care process interrupted: barriers to maintaining and repairing houses and apartments

Abstract

In the current study, we examine what kinds of barriers appear with home maintenance and upkeep practices as a form of the care process. Maintaining a home can be seen as providing care for both the dwelling and its inhabitants. To investigate which barriers may interrupt the home care process and how they hinder its progress, we explored interview data (n=28) of homeowners, tenants and right-of-occupancy residents living in Finland. The findings are presented in relation to the four phases of the care process in which the barriers are hindering the process. In our analysis, we identify barriers related to the elements of practices, actions or practices of other people and time. Often, care is hindered by interlinked combinations of several different barriers. When the care process is interrupted, it affects both the comfort of the residents and the condition of the home. Our results bring forward that care, the residents, the house or apartment, and the environment are interconnected and interdependent. In addition, the residents’ possibilities to care for the home are tied to barriers. This research contributes to home maintenance literature by introducing the perspective of care in the prevailing discussions and the growing discussion on care within consumption studies. It provides a nuanced understanding of how the barriers delimit consumers’ agency in carrying out home maintenance practices as a form of care.