The software creates visualizations of everyday life from time diaries in which the diarist has written what time activities start, what activities are performed, where the person is located, movements between different locations and with whom the person is together when performing activities. In addition, it is possible to add other aspects of daily life that is of interest for the specific purpose of a study, for example what technologies or appliances are used when performing activities, what is on one’s mind when doing things or one’s mood. The time-diaries consequently can be adjusted according to the aim with the specific study.
The software Daily Life was developed in the 1990’s by Kajsa Ellegård and Kersti Nordell. It has been further developed and the version currently used is Daily Life 2011. The development is done together with the occupational therapists Lena-Karin Erlandsson, Lund University, and Gunilla Liedberg, Linköping University. The software is used by researchers in several academic fields, mainly human geography, technology and social change, social work and occupational therapy.
The software is based on a specific categorization scheme which includes the codes for the activities written in the diaries. It is possible to add new codes. A manual for how to manage the software and the code scheme is free to download (for Windows only).
In its basic form the software can be used for visualizing daily activity sequences, geographic mobility and social contexts and for calculating the average time use for activities, time used for visiting locations and for movements and also for social togetherness.
