Paper Outline for 158.729
Social-technical System Design and Evaluation
Paper Number and Title: 158.729: Social-technical
System Design and Evaluation
Credits Value: 15 Semester: S1 This page at http://brianwhitworth.com/158729/
Campus:
Paper Coordinator: Brian Whitworth
Other Contributing Staff: None
Aim: To introduce
students to social-technical systems (STS), including
the principles of their Analysis, Design and Evaluation.
Text: The
Social Design of Technical Systems
See also, The
Handbook of Socio-technical Design and Social Networking Also Open link
Calendar
Prescription:
This course is designed to help students
planning research in the design and evaluation of socio-technical systems. It
is founded on the premise that one must understand social requirements
to design, implement or operate socio-technical system, i.e. human-centred computing. Such systems could be web-based,
but include any multi-user application where people interact and affect each
other online, including social-network systems, online game worlds and
communities of practice. The course will help students understand
socio-technical systems.
Learning
Outcomes:
Modern information systems are no longer simply
“technologies”. Social-technical systems
are computer technologies that also enable social interaction of any type,
whether conversation (email), group discussion (chat), joint editing (wiki),
trade (electronic markets like E-bay), online learning systems (Stream) or
social networking systems like FaceBook. Such
systems, in fields like health, education and the community, raise new
challenges in design and evaluation. They require a multi-disciplinary approach
that combines social and technical knowledge in innovative ways. A student who
successfully completes this paper will be able to:
1.
Critically
read and understand research and knowledge on social theories and principles
that affect information systems architecture and design.
2.
Use
online resources, such as the ACM digital library, to investigate in detail the
latest research in an approved area of their choice relevant to this subject.
3.
Understand
practically the many different types of online social-technical systems, and
relate their differences in human goals to the success or failure of their
technical design.
The course steps students through firstly reading and summarizing STS research, then critically reviewing it, then a
practical evaluation and finally to developing a theoretical STS design proposal.
Prerequisite(s): none
Corequisite(s): none
Restrictions: no restrictions
Assessment: Course assessment (subject to modification) is broken
down as follows:
|
Assessment |
Allocation |
Graded Out Of |
|
Assignment 1. |
35% |
10 |
|
Assignment 2. |
25% |
15 |
|
Assignment 3. |
40% |
100 |
|
TOTAL |
100% |
|
Written material:
a. Loose material is not acceptable. Do not submit assignments with
expensive bindings, as you may have to come to get them back. Your work is not
judged by its cover. A single staple in the top left corner is satisfactory for
most printed work.
b. ALL WRITTEN WORK MUST BE SPELL CHECKED. Bad spelling indicates
carelessness or ignorance, and spell checking is easy to do.
For any assignment, work that is unstapled loses 5%. Any spelling error found
that could have been detected by a spell checker will result in an automatic
deduction of 5% out of 100% from the final grade.
All assignments submitted for this course originate in computer form.
Students must retain a copy on their own computer of all material
submitted, as backup in case something happens to their submitted work. By
submitting any material to this course for assessment, the student authorizes
instructors to retain a copy of that material for grading and teaching.
Instructors may reference a part of that material, or parts of it, given the
student involved is anonymous, for the purpose of instructing other students,
and for their learning benefit.
Deadlines and Penalties: Assignments must be done professionally and submitted
on time. Being on time is part of being professional. Plan to
complete assignments with this in mind. If you leave things until the last
moment, you are predictably vulnerable to the unexpected. All assignments due
in class (see Timetable) are due at the beginning of the stated class
period. For assessments that involve specific events, like
project progress presentations and the final presentation, no “late” or “redo”
is possible, as part of the desired learning experience is that event. For the
final project, the time
deadline for submission is very tight, so each working day late will reduce the
points graded out of by 10, and projects
submitted more than two days late will not be accepted, except under
exceptional circumstances. Other assignments lose 10% for each working day
late, and will not be accepted at all after five days (over one working week
late).
Requirements to Pass the Paper: All of the course assessments must be attempted. Also
note that failure to complete any of these requirements will lead to a DNC
unless covered by the Aegrotat Regulations.
Learning Programme and
Schedule: The
student will be led through a process of study that begins with simple readings
and ends with a major project. However the level will be postgraduate, and so
students are expected to study independently at the requisite level.
E-learning Category: Web supported through the syllabus and other
materials available at http://brianwhitworth.com/158729/
Conditions for
Conditions for Impaired Performance: If you consider that your performance in, or
preparation for, an examination, or another compulsory assessment element that
occurs at a fixed time and place, has been seriously impaired by illness,
injury or a serious crisis, you may apply for an impaired performance
consideration. You must apply on the
form available from the Examinations Office, the Student Health Service or the
Student Counselling Service.
Student Time Budget: Information Systems Project is a 15-credit paper. That equates to 12.5
hours of work per week for a 15-week semester, or the equivalent of over 4
weeks of full-time work (187 hours).
·
The writing format required is as described in the Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th edition). This
"research writers Bible" offers practical information about the
structure of research articles, grammar and punctuation guidelines, how to
properly cite and reference outside sources, and much more. Students for whom
English is a second language will benefit from many of the language guidelines
specified in the APA Manual. The final
written project report must comply with APA style as
described in the APA Manual.
·
For a journal article: Spark, J. S., Glow, J. P. and
Twinkle, L., (1994). APA format for journal articles.
Management Science, 28(10), 1187-1197.
For a book: Spark, J. S., Glow, J. P.and
Twinkle, L., (1994), APA Format For Books,
For a web site: give originator, URL and date viewed
In the text use "(author, date)",
then list all citations in alphabetical order by author at the end of the
assignment
Timetable
Wedesday, 3-6pm in QA5
Note: There is
a lot of material because that is the nature of the subject. You need to pick
an area to focus on.
|
Week |
Date |
Topic |
Assignments/Readings |
|
1 |
|
1.
Introduction: The evolution of computing |
Read: Chapter 1 |
|
2. |
|
1. (ctd) STS Handbook
I. |
|
|
3. |
|
2. Design Spaces. Slides STS Handbook II. |
Read: Chapter 2 |
|
4. |
|
3. Socio-technical System Design |
Read: Chapter 3 |
|
5. |
|
4.
Polite Computing |
Read: Chapter 4 |
|
|
|
MIDTERM |
|
|
6. |
|
5.
The Social Environment Model |
|
|
7. |
|
STS
Handbook IV |
Asg 2 due |
|
8. |
|
6.
Rights Analysis |
Read: Chapter 6 |
|
|
|
7.
The Future |
|
|
10. |
|
STS
Handbook V |
|
|
11. |
|
Student presentation(s) Asg
3 |
|
|
12. |
|
Course review and
any final presentations |
|
Note: Students will not necessarily study all the papers
provided, but are expected to read the
papers relevant to their chosen topic area.
Plagiarism:
As part of your report print a cover sheet with your
name, due date, submit date, title, and the following statement of academic
integrity:
"I declare that this research study is entirely the
product of my own work and that it has not been taken from the work of others.
When the work and ideas of others have been used in the study, the work has
been properly cited in the text.", and then sign it below. An electronic
copy of your final report may be submitted to turnitin.com to evaluate the
report for plagiarised content.
Grievance Procedures: A student who claims that he/she has sustained academic disadvantage as
a result of the actions of a University staff member should use the University
Grievance Procedures. Students, whenever practicable, should in the first instance
approach the University staff member concerned. If the grievance is unresolved
with the staff member concerned, the student should then contact the
HCI Encylopedia: http://www.interaction-design.org/encyclopedia/
First
Monday - Article Sources
The Social Requirements
of Technical Systems
Links to socio-technical systems: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Groupware
IS
Theories: http://www.fsc.yorku.ca/york/istheory/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
Microsoft social computing: http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/groups/scg/
Social
Informatics and papers: http://rkcsi.indiana.edu/archive/CSI/
Computing
and Information Technology Interactive Digital Educational Library
Information
Technology Issues: http://home.earthlink.net/~inforef/techglob.htm#SOCIALIMPACTS
Shirky, C. Group as User: Flaming and the Design of
Social Software. http://www.shirky.com/writings/group_user.html
(2004)
Spolsky, J. It’s not just usability. http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/NotJustUsability.html
(2004)
Vander
Wal, T. Social Software Design for One. http://www.slideshare.net/vanderwal/math-of-social-software-in-designing-social-software-for-one.
DCampSouth,
Raleigh, North Carolina. (2007)
Polite
computing: Cooper, A. & Reimann, R. About Face 2.0: The Essentials of Interaction Design.
Indianapolis, Wiley 2003
Academia & Internet: http://itc.conversationsnetwork.org/shows/detail1864.html
on http://connotea.org/ and http://network.nature.com/
Creative
Commons http://creativecommons.org/ ,
accessed 31 January 2008
Policy and the Internet http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/
We need a new Internet? http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/weekinreview/15markoff.html
Open journal systems, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Journal_Systems
Preprint servers http://precedings.nature.com/
The Creative Commons http://creativecommons.org/
Public
Library of Science: http://www.plos.org/oa/index.html
Computing
Research Repository: http://arxiv.org/corr/
CogPrints (http://cogsci.soton.ac.uk) in the
cognitive sciences
Biomedicine
PubMed http://www.nih.gov/welcome/director/pubmedcentral/pubmedcentral.htm
Multi-media
education MERLOT http://www.merlot.org/merlot/index.htm
BlogHUD http://bloghud.com/
, accessed 31 January 2008
Collating blogs http://technorati.com/
Blogiversity http://www.blogiversity.org/
Tiddlywiki http://www.tiddlywiki.com/
Survey Monkey http://www.surveymonkey.com/Home_Landing.aspx
Free software The Free Software Definition
- GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)
Volunteerism? http://www.artima.com/weblogs/viewpost.jsp?thread=250169
An
open access paper http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1894964
Computing
Research Association: http://www.cra.org/
Email
Spam issues http://www.slate.com/id/2074042/
Sites
that invite user input, e.g. Sharkbait http://www.computerworld.com/index.jsp
Social
bookmarks and tags:
Delicious http://del.icio.us/
Digg http://digg.com/
Wikis
Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki
Tiddlywiki http://www.tiddlywiki.com/
Wiki for Recommender Systems at www.recsyswiki.com
Social
networks
Myspace http://www.myspace.com/
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/sitetour/homepage.php
Youtube http://youtube.com/
Electronic
markets
Amazon )books) http://www.amazon.com/
Monster (jobs) http://www.monster.com/
E bay http://www.ebay.com/
Craig’s list http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites.html
Discussions
Slashdot http://slashdot.org/
Hardware Reviews http://www.anandtech.com/
Electronic learning
WebCT (now Blackboard) http://www.webct.com/webct/
Moodle http://moodle.org/
Webboard http://www.webboard.com/
Blogs and Newsfeeds
Andrew Sullivan http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/
Chinese NZ news http://www.skykiwi.com/
Software
Browsers/email - Mozilla http://www.mozilla.org/
Winzip http://www.vodahost.com/winzip.htm
Antivirus – AVG http://free.grisoft.com/doc/2/
Emails
Gmail https://mail.google.com/
ListServs: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?INDEX
Free storage
Mediamax http://www.mediamax.com/
Flickr (photo sharing) http://www.flickr.com/
Online banking/investing
Kiwibank http://www.kiwibank.co.nz/
Active
Worlds www.activeworlds.com/ ,
Croquet
www.opencroquet.org ,
Harvard’s
Rivercity Project http://muve.gse.harvard.edu/rivercityproject
,
IT.net
Blog http://itnet-sl.blogspot.com/ ,
Maya
http://usa.autodesk.com ,
Omidyar Network http://home.omidyar.net/ ,
Second
Life www.secondlife.com ,
Second
Life Profiles www.slprofiles.com/ ,
Snapzilla http://sluniverse.com/pics/ ,
Techsoup www.techsoup.org/ ,
There
www.there.com/ ,
Better
World http://slurl.com/secondlife/Better%20World/128/128/0
,
Creative
Commons http://slurl.com/secondlife/Kula%204/147/87/25
,
ElvenGlen http://slurl.com/secondlife/ElvenGlen/128/128/0
,
IBM
http://slurl.com/secondlife/IBM/128/128/0
,
ITnet
- LIC - D.I.Co. – UniMi http://slurl.com/secondlife/pesca/87/81/29
Neualtenburg,
Altenburg http://slurl.com/secondlife/Funadama/101/156/33
Omidyar http://slurl.com/secondlife/Omidyar/128/128/0
Orientation
Island 1 http://slurl.com/secondlife/Orientation%20Island%201/123/134/26
,
Techsoup.com,
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Plush%20Nonprofit%20Commons/86/94/26
,
Some Web Design Tips
Navigation:
·
http://www.merges.net/theory/20010604.html
Additional Information and Advice:
“Socio-technical” combines social theory and technical
practice, e.g. theories from but not limited to the FIRST LIST below and
application(s) from but not limited to the SECOND LIST:
FIRST LIST: Some Social/psychological Theory
Perspectives
-
Active knowledge systems
- Anthropological models
- Applied pragmatics
- Archeological and history models
- Collaborative working environments
- Communication and meaning theory
- Community informatics
- Contextual theory models
- Criminal and social justice theories
- E-business, E-government, E-politics, E-health etc. perspectives
- Educational/learning theory - Game theory
- HCI theory, human sensory processing and
recognition models
- Interpersonal relationship models
- IT design models, and IT quality evaluation
- Language/action theory
- Leadership theories
- Media choice theories
- Negotiation and conflict models - Open source theories
- Organizational communication modeling
- Political models, theories of social rights and obligations
- Pragmatic web theory
- Semantic modeling
- Small group theory
- Sociological models and social philosophy
- General systems theory
- Technology appropriation theory
- Technology acceptance or social diffusion theories
- ANY OTHER SOCIAL THEORY
SECOND LIST: Possible Technology Application
Areas
-- Information Management Systems:
Browsers, Search engines, ListServs, Web-crawlers, Portals
-- Human Expression Systems: Home
pages, Virtual museum/art gallery,Online music
publishing, Online books/journals, E-zines, Blogs, Online news
-- Interpersonal Relation Systems:
Email, Internet phone (e.g. Skype),Video-phone and conferencing, Instant
messages, Chat, Social networking, texting
-- Group Interaction Systems: Wikis,
Bulletin boards, Group writing systems, Collaborative tools, Commenting
systems, Online voting, E-governance, Online leadership, Online norms,
Communities of Action, Group membership systems, Online democracy, Communities
of Practice, Online multi-player games, Online cooperatives
-- Trade and Business Systems:
Electronic markets, Recommender systems, Enterprise information systems, Job
markets, Work flow systems, Web-bots (buyer/sellers), End-user license
agreements (EULA),Online barter systems, RFID systems.
-- Health Support Systems: Diagnostic
support systems, Patient record systems, Out-patient support systems, Patient
empowerment systems
-- Learning Support Systems: Online
learning systems, Asynchronous Learning Systems, E-learning practices, Help
agents, Video teaching, FAQ's and Help-boards, Training and tutorial systems
-- Anti-social systems: Spyware,
Phone-home systems, Spam, Unwanted software installs, Spoofing, Phishing,
Identity theft, Hacking tools
Some references
· Berners-Lee, T. (2000). Weaving The Web: The original
design and ultimate destiny of the world wide web.
· Raymond, E. S. (1997). The Cathedral and the Bazaar.
http://tuxedo.org/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/.
· Tenner, E. (1997). Why Things Bite Back. New York:
Vintage Books, Random House.
· Wheatley, K. L., & Flexner, W. A. (1991). The
pitfalls of portability ... or ... Why more is not better. Paper presented at
the Proceedings of the 24th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences
· Lessig, L.,
2000. Cyberspace's constitution, In: Lecture given at the American
· Agre, P. E.
(2001). Changing places: Contexts of awareness in computing. Human-Computer
Interaction, 16. http://www1.ics.uci.edu/~jpd/NonTradUI/SpecialIssue/agre.pdf
· Jones
Q., Ravid G., and Rafaeli
S., 2002, Mass Interaction, Information Overload and Computer Mediated
Communication Tools. Submitted to Information Systems Research.
· Jones, Q., & Whitworth, B. (2002).
·
Stefik, M. (1997). Trusted systems. Scientific
American, March, 78.
·
Hogg, M. A. (1992). The
social psychology of group cohesiveness, Harvester, Wheatsheaf.
·
Rice, R. (1999).
Artifacts and paradoxes in new media. New Media and Society, 1(1), 24-32.
·
Poundstone, W. (1992). Prisoner's Dilemma. New York:
Doubleday, Anchor.