Networks of communication evolve in terms of reflexive exchanges. The codification of these reflections in language, that is, at the social level, can be considered as the operating system of society. Under sociologically specifiable conditions, the discursive reconstructions can be expected to make the systems under reflection increasingly knowledge-intensive. This sociological theory of communication is founded in a tradition that includes Giddens' (1979) structuration theory, Habermas' (1981) theory of communicative action, and Luhmann's (1984) proposal to consider social systems as self-organizing. The study also elaborates on Shannon's (1948) mathematical theory of communication for the formalization and operationalization of the non-linear dynamics. The development of scientific communications can be studied using citation analysis. The exchange media at the interfaces of knowledge production provide us with the evolutionary model of a Triple Helix of university-industry-government relations. The construction of the European Information Society can then be analyzed in terms of interacting networks of communication. The issues of sustainable development and the expectation of social change are discussed in relation to the possibility of a general theory of communication.

We propose that emerging collaboration, or groupware, technology that supports synchronous interaction among students and faculty can add new aspects to the traditional distance learning and university course models. To explore this assumption we taught a masters' level university course using collaboration technology. In our approach, collaboration technology (integrated synchronous audio- and video-conferencing, electronic whiteboard and shared application tools) was used to provide students at universities in different countries opportunities to participate in interactive class exercises and discussions, and to do class assignments together. Students also participated in traditional, face-to-face class seminars, discussions and exercises at their local university. Thus students learned using collaboration technology and traditional methods. In this paper we describe the course and discuss students' evaluations of the course, their collaboration with each other, and collaboration technology used during the course. Students evaluated the course and their collaborative experiences very highly but reported unique challenges and had mixed impressions with respect to the technology. Challenges included establishing interpersonal communication and meeting commitments. In general, students judged collaboration technology lower than e-mail and telephony in characteristics such as social presence, participation and ease of use. However, there were differences in evaluations among students in Chapel Hill and Oulu implying cultural preferences. In addition, students reported varying degrees of productivity and variety of tasks afforded the technology. These differences were similar for students in Chapel Hill and Oulu, implying individual preferences influenced evaluation of the technology. These results appear to imply that students need to learn principles of collaboration in addition to the technology for collaborative learning across distances to occur, and that a variety of technologies are needed to accommodate cultural and individual differences among students.

There are many approaches to fostering authentic inquiry in educational settings and communities, but many suffer from the inconsistency inherent in top-down approaches. What happens when users are not merely recipients of a design for inquiry, but take an active role in creating that design? This presentation examines three examples: (1) Chickscope, a K-12 science education project, (2) Paseo Boricua, a community in Chicago, and (3) Ethnography of the University, a project in which undergraduates research the lived experiences within the university.

Public concern about personal privacy has recently focused on issues of Internet data security and personal information as big business. The scientific discourse about information privacy focuses on the crosspressures of maintaining confidentiality and ensuring access in the context of the production of statistical data for public policy and social research and the associated technical solutions for releasing statistical data. This article reports some of the key findings from a smallscale survey of organizational practices to limit disclosure of confidential information prior to publishing public use microdata files, and illustrates how the rules for preserving confidentiality were applied in practice. Explanation for the apparent deficits and wide variations in the extent of knowledge about statistical disclosure limitation (SDL) methods is located in theories of organizational life and communities of practice. The article concludes with suggestions for improving communication between communities of practice to enhance the knowledge base of those responsible for producing public use microdata files.

Tertiary educational institutes have had many Information Systems developed and implemented for the use of students and lecturers. The problem is that more often than not, the impacts of Information Systems on social communities of organisations have not been taken into account, or insufficient attention has been paid to them. The social impact of Information Systems are rarely taken into account when systems are being designed or implemented, and as a result lead to many Information System failures. This research explores the issues of the interface between information systems and society, and addresses the social impact of these systems. A thorough investigation of the Information Systems and users of those systems at the University of South Africa has been undertaken in this study Details regarding certain social impact of Information Systems will be discussed. This research proposes a set of guidelines to help ensure that the social impacts of tertiary institutes’ Information Systems are taken into account in the design and implementation of these systems, thereby increasing the chance of success of those systems. Those who stand to benefit from information contained in this study include various tertiary institutes’ faculties of Information Systems and Technology, the departments responsible for the development of those Information Systems, users of those systems, and the social community encompassing those systems.

A major component of the internet are websites which each have their information architecture, but more importantly, findability. This thesis focusses on the topic of findability, which is defined by Morville as “The quality of being locatable or navigable” (Morville, 2005, p. 4). Findability has become more crucial due to an increasing amount of information and time people spent on searching and gathering information. This motivation has led to the aim of investigating findability through insights into, and a delineation of, two complementary perspectives: information architecture and social informatics. Empirical evidence was collected through semi-structured interviews with design practitioners, and a literature review was conducted to provide an integrated view of findability. The STIN-model and berry-picking model provide a frame of reference which designers can use to improve the findability of their digital platforms. The most predominant suggestions based on the empirical evidence are as follows. Firstly, designers should remember that they are problem solvers and should always use methods appropriate to the problem that needs to be resolved. Secondly, designers should start with problem analysis, which should combine qualitative and quantitative methods to reach the optimal results with regards to user research. Finally, do not reinvent the wheel, make use of already existing tools that incorporate upgradeability and reusability.

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the Degree of Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) in the Department of Library and Information Science at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2010. / Social Informatics is the field of study concentrating on the social aspects of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) utilisation with researchers in the field concentrating on aspects such as human interaction with ICTs, the effect of certain hardware and software on utilisation and the impact that the use of ICTs have on the daily lives of people in society. One of the areas where the use of ICTs can have a huge influence is on governmental service delivery, where these tools can be used to speed up processes, beef up security, provide access to, and disseminate information, and be used in virtually all government departments to provide a more effective and efficient service to all its people. The aim of the study was to examine the use, impact and interaction of ICTs for service delivery among Civil Servants in the uMhlatuze area. The study was carried out using both qualitative and quantitative methods through survey research. The objectives of the study were: to determine the nature of the services rendered in the three targeted Departments (Education, Health and Social Development), to establish the types of ICTs currently in use by Civil Servants in uMhlatuze area, to explore how the Civil Servants interact with ICTs in the municipality, to explore the impact of the Civil Servants` interaction with ICTs, to determine the training needs of the Civil Servants, in so far as effective ICT utilisation is concerned, to determine users level of satisfaction with the standard of service delivery, to outline the challenges faced in the service provision. Data was collected via questionnaires that were submitted to the three departments by the researcher. Interviews were also conducted with both civil servants and their clients. The aim of the interviews was to get their personal opinions on problems facing service provision. The number of responses from the distributed questionnaires varied: Education (21), Health (9) and Social Development (5). Managers from the three departments were interviewed with an aim of understanding types of services they offer to clients, clients satisfaction with service offered to them, the use of computers in providing services, the level of computer literacy among staff (Civil Servants), difficulties experienced when providing services to clients, and the effect of the availability of computers in providing service delivery. The study revealed that not all ICT tools are generally available and/or used by civil servants in the uMhlatuze Municipality It was also found that most new technologies were neither used, nor available, or could not be accessed by civil servants in the departments, e.g. the Internet, laptop computers, databases, video cameras, video recorders, sound/tape recorders, overhead projectors, and information systems. The government also does not appear to make much use of radio and television, which are mediums that are often used in this country for communication. The researcher recommended that the government should ensure that each civil servant has a computer linked to the Internet on his or her table. All available ICT tools should also be provided to the different departments because they deal with different social needs everyday that may require different solutions. A lack of skills to operate a number of ICTs, especially the computers was identified as a serious impediment to effective service delivery. Therefore it was recommended that the Departments of Education, Health and Social Development send their staff for training on the efficient utilization of ICT tools, specifically computer related training. It was further recommended that computer literacy courses and refresher courses be offered on a continual basis in order to elevate the level of computer literacy among the civil servants, especially for programmes such as Word processing, Excel and PowerPoint which are used almost daily in the public service.

Based on the idea of broadening access to learning opportunities for all by means of new Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), the Open Educational Resources (OER) movement has gained ground during the first years of the 21st Century while capturing the imagination of educators, university leaders, policy-makers and opinion leaders all over the globe. Drawing on socio-technical theories and adopting a case study research design, which involved the analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data, this thesis addresses the manifold tensions and paradoxes that may emerge out of the interplay between a highly predefined model of OER provision and the everyday realities and institutional contexts of different higher education settings. In particular, it focuses on the process of implementation by Spanish universities of OpenCourseWare (OCW) initiatives, a widely adopted model of OER provision that was originally devised at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. By examining the enactment of technology as a situated phenomenon, this study sheds light on the roles that OCW initiatives play in relation to the strategic orientation of universities and how the actual involvement of scholars in the creation of this type of materials is often curbed by some entrenched institutional arrangements and prevailing academic cultures. The findings of this thesis have theoretical as well as practical implications, which suggest that the replication of models of OER provision outside the specific settings in which they were originally devised is a rather problematic endeavour. More generally, it supports the idea that the implementation of ICTs must be always accompanied by social structures that are mindful and respectful of local specificities and institutional arrangements. Another key conclusion is that, if universities are genuinely committed to broadening access to higher education opportunities and supporting participation in life-long learning by means of ICTs, it is crucial to understand the ways and extent to which OER initiatives can actually contribute to achieving such goals.

Document in French / Cet article présente brièvement notre projet de recherche doctorale. à travers le rôle et les fonctions des bibliothèques universitaires, nous cherchons à comprendre les facteurs sociaux, économiques, institutionnels et documentaires ayant un impact sur lâ intégration des dépôts institutionnels dans lâ infrastructure informationnelle des universités canadiennes. ___________________________________________________________ This paper briefly presents our doctoral project. Throughout the role and the responsibilities of academic libraries, we aim to understand the social, economical, institutional and documentary factors influencing the integration of institutional repositories into the information infrastructure of Canadian universities.

SIPP ACCESS represents an innovation in providing services for statistical data. A computer-based, integrated information system incorporates both the data and information about the data. SIPP ACCESS systematically links the technologies of laser disk, mainframe computer, microcomputer, and electronic networks and applies relational technology to create great efficiencies and lower the costs of storing, managing, retrieving, and transmitting data and information about complex statistical data collections. This information system has been applied to national longitudinal panel surveys. The article describes the reasons why SIPP ACCESS was created to improve access to these complex surveys and provides examples of tools that facilitate access to information about the contents of these large data sets.