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Call for Participation: SIG SI’s 9th Annual Social Informatics Research Symposium

ASIS&T SIG SI, along with our co-sponsor the Rob Kling Center for Social Informatics at Indiana University, is happy to announce and post a Call for Papers and Participation for the 9th Annual Social Informatics Research Symposium: The Social Informatics of Information Boundaries. The symposium will take place on November 2nd as part of the ASIS&T 2013 Annual Meeting in Montreal. The deadline for paper, poster, and panel proposals is August 9th. Full details are included below. Good luck to all who submit!

The 9th Annual Social Informatics Research Symposium: The Social Informatics of Information Boundaries

Sponsored by: ASIS&T SIG Social Informatics and Rob Kling Center for Social Informatics, Indiana University

Saturday, November 2, 2013, 8:30-12:30 PM
Centre Sheraton, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Organizers: Howard Rosenbaum and Pnina Fichman, School of Informatics and Computing, Indiana University (ASIS&T SIG SI Co-Chairs)

The purpose of this ASIS&T pre-conference research symposium is to disseminate current research and research in progress that investigates the social aspects of information and communication technologies (ICT) across all areas of ASIS&T. Building on the success of past years, the symposium includes members of many SIGs and defines “social” broadly to include critical and historical approaches as well as contemporary social analysis. It also defines “technology” broadly to include traditional technologies (i.e., paper), state-of-the-art computer systems, and mobile and pervasive devices. Submissions may include empirical, critical and theoretical work, as well as richly described practice cases and demonstrations.

This year, as we observe the 10th year since the passing of Rob Kling, we are particularly interested in papers that advance social informatics further in theoretical conceptualization or empirical grounding. We are interested in work that assumes a critical stance towards the Symposium’s theme but are also soliciting research on other related social informatics topics. We encourage all scholars interested in social aspects of ICT (broadly defined) to share their research and research in progress by submitting an extended abstract of their work and attending the symposium.

This year’s conference theme is “Beyond the Cloud: Rethinking Information Boundaries.” In keeping with this theme, the symposium theme is “the social informatics of information boundaries.” We are soliciting work that focuses on the critical analysis of the concept of information boundaries and boundary work from a Social Informatics perspective. Questions motivating the research could include (but are not limited to):

  • What can a social informatics approach tell us about the nature of information boundaries, boundary crossing, and boundary work?
  • What are the social and technological forces that enable and constrain information boundaries and boundary work?
  • How do the social, technological, and informational boundaries evolve and shape each other?
  • How and to what extent can we enhance our understanding of information boundaries by drawing on sociological, organizational, and other social science theories?

The schedule for the workshop will involve the presentations of papers and the best social informatics paper awards for 2012 (call to follow). We expect an engaging discussion with lively interactions with the audience.

Deadlines

August 9, 2013: Submit a short paper (2000 words), a poster (500 words), or a panel (1000 words) by email to ASIS&T SIG SI co-chairs Howard Rosenbaum (hrosenba@indiana.edu) and Pnina Fichman (fichman@indiana.edu).

September 2, 2013: Author notifications (in time for conference early registration. NOTE: this timeline may be adjusted when the registration dates are announced.)

Fees

ASIS&T members $90 – early registration ($110 after early registration ends)

Non-members $110 – early registration ($130 after early registration ends)