Defining and Understanding Experiences of Tiny Home Living in Indonesia. Case studies: Greater Jakarta and Bali Urban Areas

Studies of tiny homes in Western countries and some Asian metropolitan areas have identified them as a movement, a trend of shrinking dwelling space, an approach to address housing issues, or a strategy for capitalism through housing development. Studies of this phenomenon in Southeast Asia are still rarely found. Responding to this gap, this study explores the existence and the lived experiences of tiny homes in Indonesia to generate a new dataset and ignite further discussions and studies associated with this topic. This study was conducted as qualitative research, with multiple case studies in the Greater Jakarta and Bali urban areas, utilising multiple methods: semi-structured interviews, photo documentation, photo elicitation, sketches, ethnographic observations, and field notes, all of which were collected during the fieldwork. In addition, this research incorporated a document review of Indonesian housing regulations to get a fundamental understanding of housing in the Indonesian context. Exhibiting a wide range of data, this study has revealed that Indonesia also experiences this global phenomenon. However, there are nuances and differences in the existence and lived experiences of tiny home living due to restrictive sociocultural norms and a lower standard of housing size set by the Indonesian government. This research has generated insights for housing stakeholders in the Indonesian context and, more broadly, contributes to international academic study and future housing research to further our understanding of the typology, drivers and lived experiences of tiny homes.