"This book provides a source for definitions, antecedents, and consequences of social informatics and the cultural aspect of technology. It addresses cultural/societal issues in social informatics technology and society, the Digital Divide, government and technology law, information security and privacy, cyber ethics, technology ethics, and the future of social informatics and technology"--Provided by publisher.
The term digital divide is still used regularly to characterize the injustice associated with inequalities in access to information and communication technologies (ICTs). As the debate continues and becomes more sophisticated, more and more aspects of the distribution of ICTs are singled out as relevant to characterizations of the digital divide and of its moral status. The best way to articulate the digital divide is to relate it to other aspects of social and distributive justice, using a mixture of pre-existing theories within moral and political philosophy. These theories are complemented with contributions from sociology, communication studies, information systems, and a range of other disciplines. Information Technology and Social Justice presents conceptual frameworks for understanding and tackling digital divides. It includes information on access and skills, access and motivation, and other various levels of access. It also presents a detailed analysis of the benefits and value of access to ICTs.
This anthology brings together multiple viewpoints on the social dimensions of the revolution in information technology. The chapters cover social, political, educational, personal, and international dimensions of information technology impacts. Each chapter focuses on different aspects of the effects of computing and the new information technologies that have accelerated every area of human life. This book raises important issues with profound implications for public policy and societal development.
The articles in this book constitute the proceedings papers from the IFIP WG 8.2 Working Conference, "IS2000: The Social and Organizational Perspective on Research and Practice in Information Technology," held June 1 0-12, 2000, in Aalborg, Denmark. The focus of the conference, and therefore this book, is on the basic aim of the working group, namely, the investigation of the interrelationships among four major components: information systems (IS), information technology (IT), organizations, and society. This basic social and organizational perspective on research and practice in information technology may have evolved substantially since the founding ofthe group, for example, increasing the emphasis on IS development. The plan for the conference was partially rooted in the early WG 8.2 traditions, in which working conferences were substantially composed of invited papers. For IS2000, roughly half of the paper presentations were planned to be invited; the remaining half were planned to be double-blind refereed in response to a "Call For Papers." Invited papers were single-blind reviewed in order to provide the authors with pre-publication feedback and comments, along with the opportunity to revise their papers prior to its final incorporation in this book.
Much of the discussion about new technologies and social equality has focused on the oversimplified notion of a "digital divide." Technology and Social Inclusion moves beyond the limited view of haves and have-nots to analyze the different forms of access to information and communication technologies. Drawing on theory from political science, economics, sociology, psychology, communications, education, and linguistics, the book examines the ways in which differing access to technology contributes to social and economic stratification or inclusion. The book takes a global perspective, presenting case studies from developed and developing countries, including Brazil, China, Egypt, India, and the United States. A central premise is that, in today's society, the ability to access, adapt, and create knowledge using information and communication technologies is critical to social inclusion. This focus on social inclusion shifts the discussion of the "digital divide" from gaps to be overcome by providing equipment to social development challenges to be addressed through the effective integration of technology into communities, institutions, and societies. What is most important is not so much the physical availability of computers and the Internet but rather people's ability to make use of those technologies to engage in meaningful social practices.
The flood of information technology (I.T.) products and services entering the market place often obscures the need to nurture the research enterprise. But as I.T. becomes integrated into all aspects of society, the need for research is even greater. And the range of issues that need to be addressed is broader than ever. This new book highlights the fundamental importance of research to ensure that I.T. meets society's expanding needs. Against the background of dramatic change in the I.T. landscape, the committee examines four key questions: Is the scope of I.T. research broad enough-particularly in the arena of large-scale systems-to address government, business, and social applications? Are government and industrial sponsors providing sufficient funding for I.T. research? Is the research net big both big and diverse enough to capture sufficient financial and intellectual resources to advance the field? Are structures and mechanisms for funding and conducting research suited to the new sets of research challenges?
The internet has fundamentally transformed society in the past 25 years, yet existing theories of mass or interpersonal communication do not work well in understanding a digital world. Nor has this understanding been helped by disciplinary specialization and a continual focus on the latest innovations. Ralph Schroeder takes a longer-term view, synthesizing perspectives and findings from various social science disciplines in four countries: the United States, Sweden, India and China. His comparison highlights, among other observations, that smartphones are in many respects more important than PC-based internet uses. Social Theory after the Internet focuses on everyday uses and effects of the internet, including information seeking and big data, and explains how the internet has gone beyond traditional media in, for example, enabling Donald Trump and Narendra Modi to come to power. Schroeder puts forward a sophisticated theory of the role of the internet, and how both technological and social forces shape its significance. He provides a sweeping and penetrating study, theoretically ambitious and at the same time always empirically grounded.The book will be of great interest to students and scholars of digital media and society, the internet and politics, and the social implications of big data.
Legal and ethical issues have become a standard part of engineering and business schools' curricula. This has not been the case for computer science or management information systems programs, although there has been increasing emphasis on the social skills of these students. This leaves a frightening void in their professional development. Information systems pose unique social challenges, especially for technical professionals who have been taught to think in terms of logic, structures and flows. Social, Ethical and Policy Implications of Information Technology focuses on the human impact of information systems, including ethical challenges, social implications, legal issues, and unintended costs and consequences.
A multidisciplinary examination of the interplay between social capital--the value derived from social ties--and information technology. The concept of social capital, or the value that can be derived from social ties created by goodwill, mutual support, shared language, common beliefs, and a sense of mutual obligation, has been applied to a number of fields, from sociology to management. It is only lately, however, that researchers in information technology and knowledge management have begun to explore the idea of social capital in relation to their fields. This collection of thirteen essays by computer scientists, sociologists, communication specialists, economists, and others presents a multidisciplinary look at this particular intersection of information technology and social science and the need to adopt a sociotechnical perspective.For the most part the contributors take a positive view of the interplay of social capital, knowledge sharing, and community building. Some essays look at specific instances, including the on-line and face-to-face relationships of a community of athletes, the building of social capital among Iranian NGOs, and the Internet-based communities created by the open-source movement, while others discuss more general ideas of civic and personal communities. The last four essays examine computer applications that augment social capital, including topic- and member-centered communications spaces such as the Expert Finder and the Loops system and virtual repositories of knowledge such as the Answer Garden and Pearls of Wisdom.
Examining the fundamental assumptions that we hold about the role of technology in our lives, Technology and Social Space describes the possibilities and limitations of human agency within the new wired world. In a patient and thoughtful style, author J. Macgregor Wise elaborates a critical, philosophical, and epistemological framework from which to better understand our relations to technology and social space. The book argues that most treatments of technology and society arise from a modernist episteme (or set of assumptions) that radically separates humans from technologies, focusing on questions of determination and identity. In an attempt to provide a clearer view of technology and social space, the book explores alternative perspectives centered on notions of agency. Working from within these alternative epistemes, the book turns its attention to the burgeoning technological assemblage of communication and information characterized by the Internet and cyberspace. Technology and Social Space draws on the philosophy of Deleuze and Guattari and the actor-network sociology of Bruno Latour, and brings together diverse examples from cyborg films, television, museums, cyberspace, and debates over a New World Information and Communication Order. Ultimately, the book describes the possibilities and limitation of human agency within the new wired world. This groundbreaking volume will be of interest to professionals and academics in popular culture, media studies, mass communication, and sociology.
