Handbook of Socio-technical Design

Handbook of Research on Socio-Technical Design and Social Networking Systems

Edited by Brian Whitworth (Massey University) and Aldo de Moor (CommunitySense)Foreword by Ben Shneiderman, University of Maryland

Cite as:Whitworth, B., & De Moor, A. (Eds.). (2009). Handbook of Research on Socio-Technical Design and Social Networking Systems. Hershey, PA: IGI.” ISBN: 978-1-60566-264-0; 1,034 pp

Contributor List and Biographies 

The Handbook of Research on Socio-Technical Design and Social Networking Systems is a state-of-the-art summary of knowledge in an evolving, multi-disciplinary field. It is distinctive in its variety of international author perspectives, depth and breadth of scholarship, and combination of practical and theoretical views. This noteworthy collection is useful for anyone interested in modern socio-technical systems, where knowledge of social principles can mean the difference between success and failure.

Brian Whitworth and Aldo de Moor have gathered valuable material from an international panel of experts who guide readers through the analysis, design and implementation of socio-technical systems. It will be widely useful in defining issues in engineering, computing, management, organization, government policy, and ethics. The practical guidance and fresh theories can inspire a new generation of designers and researchers to catalyze even more potent forms of human collaboration.”– Ben Shneiderman

Foreword by Ben Shneiderman 

Preface by Brian Whitworth and Aldo de Moor

Editorial Advisory Board

Ben Shneiderman, University of Maryland, USA

Anton Nijholt, University of Twente, The Netherlands 

Tom Stewart, System Concepts, UK

Starr Roxanne Hiltz, Distinguished Professor, Emerita, USA

Mark Aakhus, Rutgers University, USA

Ronald Stamper, Independent Scholar, UK

Charles Steinfield, Michigan State University, USA

Table of Contents, Volume I

Section I. General Socio-Technical Theory

That social and technical systems can combine to create “socio-technical” systems

Prologue Socio-technical systems by Tom Stewart, System Concepts Limited, UK, p1http://www.system-concepts.com/articles/usability-and-hci/socio%11technical-design:-combining-society-and-technology/

Chapter I. The Social Requirements of Technical Systems p3Brian Whitworth, Massey University- Auckland, New Zealand

Brian Whitworth discusses how social requirements are as critical to computer system success as technical requirements.

Chapter II. The Social Study of Computer Science 23 Matti Tedre, Tumaini University, Tanzania

Matti Tedre illustrates the relevance of social research methods to computer science, laying the foundation for a pluralistic approach to socio-technical research.

Chapter III. Virtual Collaboration and Community, p39Ann Borda, Victorian eResearch Strategic Initiative (VeRSI), AustraliaJonathan P. Bowen, London South Bank University & Museophile Limited, UK

Ann Borda and Jonathan P. Bowen discuss how the functions and tools of virtual organizations create and support online human collaboration.

Chapter IV. The Social Derivation of Technical Systems, p50 David Davenport, Bilkent University, Turkey

David Davenport analyses how social values critically affect the design, use and evaluation of technical systems.

Chapter V. Socio-Technical Theory and Work Systems in the Information Age, p65Ken Eason, Loughborough University, UKJosé Luis Abdelnour-Nocera, Thames Valley University, UK

Ken Eason and José Luis Abdelnour-Nocera explain how socio-technical concepts and applications are changing work systems in modern organizations.

Chapter VI. An Engagement Strategy for Community Network Research and Design, p78Peter Day, University of Brighton, UK

Peter Day uses a participatory approach to explore how the social and technical connect in the “Poets Corner”, an online socio-technical community.

Chapter VII. On the Alignment of Organizational and Software Structure, p94Cleidson R. B. de Souza, Universidade Federal doPará, BrazilDavid F. Redmiles, Univeristy of California, Irvine, USA

Cleidson R. B. de Souza and David F. Redmiles outline the connection between organizational structure and software development.

Section II. Socio-Technical Perspectives

Socio-technical perspectives impact both social and technical systems

Prologue Reconciling the Social and the Technical, by Ronald K. Stamper, Independent Scholar, UK, p106

Chapter VIII. Privacy and the Identity Gap in Socio-Technical Systems, p110Catherine Heeney, The University of Oxford, UK

Catherine Heeney demonstrates that current models for the governance of online data contradict current privacy expectations.

Chapter IX. Privacy Regulation in the Metaverse, p123 Ronald Leenes, Tilburg University, The Netherlands

Ronald Leenes suggests that the need for privacy is growing in virtual worlds like Second Life, despite their avowed openness, and that such worlds are ideal environments to study social phenomena.

Chapter X. Leadership of Integrated Teams in Virtual Environments, p137 David Tuffley, Griffith University, Australia

David Tuffley reviews the role of leadership in online social interactions and how it can be improved.

Chapter XI. Recontextualising Technology in Appropriation Processes, p153 Monique Janneck, University of Hamburg, Germany

Monique Janneck reviews the critical social factors that affect whether technical artifacts designed for use in organizations are actually used by their members.

Chapter XII. Explaining Participation in Online Communities, p167Petter Bae Brandtzæg, SINTEF and University of Oslo, NorwayJan Heim, SINTEF, Norway

Petter Bae Brandtzæg and Jan Heim present data that suggests why users choose to participate in online communities – or not.

Chapter XIII. Cyber Security and Anti-Social Networking, p183Malcolm Shore, Canterbury University, New Zealand

Malcolm Shore reviews how script kiddies and hackers use and misuse social networks, and develops a model of their psychological goals in a self-absorbed flow.

Chapter XIV. Emerging Cybercrime Variants in the Socio-Technical Space, p195 Wilson Hunag, Valdosta State University, USAShun-Yung Kevin Wang, Florida State University, USA

Wilson Huang and Shun-Yung Kevin Wang suggest that cybercrime flourishes in the “gaps” between social and technical systems, and use this framework suggest response strategies to cybercrime.

Chapter XV. Developing Innovative Practice in Service Industries, p209Elayne W. Coakes, Westminster Business School, UKPeter Smith, The Leadership Alliance Inc., CanadaDee Alwis, Middlesex University, UK

Elayne Coakes, Peter Smith, and Dee Alwis suggest that socio-technical communities of innovation can improve service competitiveness in modern fast-moving business markets.

Section III. Socio-Technical Analysis

How to gather and analyze data from a socio-technical system

Prologue Gathering and analyzing data from socio-technical systems,222by Mark Aakhus, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, USA.

Chapter XVI. Using Communication Norms in Socio-Technical Systems, p224. Hans Weigand, Tilburg University, The Netherlands

Hans Weigand asks why what users ask for in a system is not always what they want, and uses a language action perspective to relate group and communication norms to the analysis, diagnosis and design of socio-technical systems.

Chapter XVII.Socio-Instrumental Pragmatism in Action, p236Jonas Sjöström, Uppsala University, SwedenGöranGoldkuhl, Linköping University, Sweden

Jonas Sjöström and GöranGoldkuhl introduce socio-instrumental pragmatism (SIP) and illustrate its use in analysis and design.

Chapter XVIII. A Framework for Using Analytics to Make Decisions, p251Paul J. Bracewell, Offlode Ltd., New Zealand

Paul Bracewell argues that while business analytics generates statistical evidence for corporate decisions, the key decisions by end-users and corporate executives are socio-technical, as they are made at some distance from the technology.

Chapter XIX. The Challenges of Co-Design and the Case of e-Me, p265 Mikael Lind, University of Borås, SwedenPeter Rittgen, VlerickLeuven Gent Management School, Belgium & University of Borås, Sweden

Mikael Lind and Peter Rittgen illustrate some of the challenges of co-design in the implementation of e-Me, an electronic online assistant for students.

Chapter XX. Formal Analysis of Workflows in Software Development, p280 Harry S. Delugach, University of Alabama in Huntsville, USA

Harry Delugach shows how conceptual graphs can help conceive, describe, evaluate, and compare workflow processes in the software development process.

Chapter XXI. The Role of Expectations in Information Systems Development, p298 Dorit Nevo, York University, CanadaBrent Furneaux, York University, Canada

DoritNevo and Brent Furneaux review how stakeholder expectations impact socio-technical analysis, and suggest that managing expectations during analysis is critical to system success.

Chapter XXII. Building a Path for Future Communities, p313 Jeff Axup, Mobile Community Design Consulting, USA

Jeff Axup illustrates how to elicit social needs in system development, using the example of back-packers sharing information with mobile technologies.

Section IV. Socio-Technical Design

How to design socio-technical systems to satisfy social and technical needs

Prologue: Socio-technical Design by Thomas Erickson, IBM T. J. Watson Research Center, USA. p334 

Chapter XXIII. Systems Design with the Socio-Technical Walkthrough, p336 Thomas Herrmann, University of Bochum, Germany

Thomas Herrmann outlines the socio-technical walkthrough, a participatory process useful when designing technical systems to support cooperation and collaboration.

Chapter XXIV. Applied Pragmatism and Interaction Design, p352 Anders I. Mørch, InterMedia University of Oslo, Norway

Anders Mørch presents a translational approach to socio-technical interface design, based on creative practices from the fields of architecture and furniture design.

Chapter XXV. A Social Framework for Software Architectural Design, p367Manuel Kolp, UniversitéCatholique de Louvain, BelgiumYves Wautelet, UniversitéCatholique de Louvain, Belgium

Manuel Kolp and Yves Wautelet suggest that multi-agent system (MAS) design can reflect human organizational structures by modeling actors, goals, responsibilities and social dependencies.

Chapter XXVI. Designing for Trust, p388 Piotr Cofta, British Telecom, UK

Piotr Cofta uses citizen identity systems to illustrate the design of socio-technical systems that people trust, and suggests that trust can be estimated before system deployment.

Chapter XXVII. Pattern Languages for CMC design, p402 Dan Dixon, University of the West of England, UK

Dan Dixon suggests that reapplying the original concepts of Alexander’s pattern languages has rich potential for socio-technical designers and developers.

Chapter XXVIII. Creating Social Technologies to Assist and Understand Social Interactions, p416 Anton Nijholt, University of Twente, The NetherlandsDirk Heylen, University of Twente, The NetherlandsRutger Rienks, University of Twente, The Netherlands

Anton Nijholt, Dirk Heylen, and Rutger Rienks review the concepts, challenges and methods used when designing electronic meeting systems that mediate social interactions.

Chapter XXIX. A Modern Socio-Technical View on ERP-Systems, p429 Jos Benders, Tilburg University & Radboud University Nijmegen,The NetherlandsRonald Batenburg, Utrecht University, The NetherlandsPaul Hoeken, Radboud University Nijmegen, The NetherlandsRoel Schouteten, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands

Jos Benders, Ronald Batenburg, Paul Hoeken and Roel Schouteten show how a socio-technical approach can improve Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems.

Chapter XXX. Being Face to Face: A State of Mind or Technological Design? p440 Mary Allan, University of Canterbury, New ZealandDavid Thorns, University of Canterbury, New Zealand

Mary Allan and David Thorns introduce field and habitus theory to conferencing technologies, and advise designers to satisfy social needs rather than try to mimic face-to-face interaction.

Table of Contents, Volume II

Chapter XXXI. Applying Bourdieu to eBay’s Success and Socio-Technical Design, p455 (link at bottom of linked page)Rebecca M. Ellis, University of Essex, UK

Rebecca Ellis uses social field theory to explain eBay’s success, and suggests extending concepts like translucence to socio-technical systems in general.

Chapter XXXII. Relationships and Etiquette with Technical Systems, p473Christopher A. Miller, Smart Information Flow Technologies, USA

Christopher A. Miller uses examples from his and others’ work to argue that designers of technology that interacts socially with people need to understand social etiquette.

Section V. Socio-Technical Implementation

How socio-technical systems are put into practice

Prologue Socio-technical Systems in the Context of Ubiquitous Computing, Ambient Intelligence, Embodied Virtuality, and the Internet of Things by Anton Nijholt, University of Twente, The Netherlands. p489

Chapter XXXIII. Augmenting Actual Life Through MUVEs, p493 Laura Anna Ripamonti, UniversitàdegliStudidiMilano, ItalyInes Di Loreto, UniversitàdegliStudidiMilano, ItalyDario Maggiorini, UniversitàdegliStudidiMilano, Italy

Laura Anna Ripamonti, InesDi Loreto, and Dario Maggiorini tap their expertise in virtual environments to suggest a socio-technical framework for Second Life and similar online worlds.

Chapter XXXIV. The Role of Affect in an Agent-Based Collaborative E-Learning System Used for Engineering Education, p510. Mohamed Ben Ammar, Research Group on Intelligent Machines (REGIM), University of Sfax, ENIS, TunisiaMahmoud Neji, Faculté des Sciences Economiques et de Gestion, University of Sfax, TunisiaAdel M. Alimi, Research Group on Intelligent Machines (REGIM), University of Sfax, ENIS, Tunisia

Mohamed Ben Ammar and Mahmoud Neji review affective computing and present an implemented multi-agent model of an intelligent tutoring system that can recognize human emotions.

Chapter XXXV. Gaze-Aided Human-Computer and Human-Human Dialogue, p529Pernilla Qvarfordt, FX Palo Alto Laboratory, USAShumin Zhai, IBM Almaden Research Center, USA

Pernilla Qvarfordt and Shumin Zhai show how designers can use eye gaze data to enrich human-computer-human and human-computer communication.

Chapter XXXVI. How to Engage Users in Online Sociability, p544 Licia Calvi, Lessius University College, Belgium

Licia Calvi investigates the conditions under which people engage socially online, and finds they use online networks to maintain connections to people they already know rather than to make new connections to people they do not.

Chapter XXXVII. Socio-Technical Systems and Knowledge Representation, p558Ivan Launders, Sheffield Hallam University, UK

Ivan Launders suggests how multi-agent architectures can model social complexity in a U.K. mobile National Health Service use case.

Chapter XXXVIII. Social Support for Online Learning, p575Claire de la Varre, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USAJulie Keane, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USAMatthew J. Irvin, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USAWallace Hannum, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA

Claire de la Varre, Julie Keane, Matthew J. Irvin and Wallace Hannum developed an online system for rural schools to meet distance learner’s social as well as intellectual needs, and suggest this can reduce attrition rates in distance education courses.

Chapter XXXIX. Enabling Remote Participation in Research, p589, Jeremy Birnholtz, Cornell University, USAEmilee J. Rader, University of Michigan, USADaniel B. Horn, Booz Allen Hamilton, USAThomas Finholt, University of Michigan, USA

Jeremy Birnholtz, Emilee J. Rader, Daniel B. Horn and Thomas Finholt apply the concept of “common ground” to shared display systems, reporting on academic research tele-participation in earthquake engineering and geo-technical centrifuge experiments.

Section VI. Socio-Technical Evaluation

How to measure and evaluate socio-technical systems

Prologue by Starr Roxanne Hiltz, New Jersey Institute of Technology, USA,p605

Chapter XL. Community Collective Efficacy, p608 John M. Carroll, The Pennsylvania State University, USAMary Beth Rosson, The Pennsylvania State University, USAUmerFarooq, The Pennsylvania State University, USAJamika D. Burge, The Pennsylvania State University, USA

John M. Carroll, Mary Beth Rosson, UmerFarooq and Jamika D. Burge develop Bandura’s collective efficacy concept into an online community measure used successfully in three of their online community projects.

Chapter XLI. An Analysis of the Socio-Technical Gap in Social Networking Sites, p620 Tanguy Coenen, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, BelgiumWouter Van den Bosch, Katholieke Hogeschool Mechelen, BelgiumVeerle Van derSluys, Independent Scholar, Belgium

Tanguy Coenen, Wouter Van Den Bosch and Veerle Van DerSluys use a social capital perspective to identify social needs and gaps in social network sites.

Chapter XLII. Situational Awareness In Collaborative Work Environments, p636 Olga Kulyk, University of Twente, The NetherlandsBetsy van Dijk, University of Twente, The NetherlandsPaul van der Vet, University of Twente, The NetherlandsAnton Nijholt, University of Twente, The NetherlandsGerrit van der Veer, Open University, The Netherlands

Olga Kulyk, Betsy van Dijk, Paul van der Vet, Anton Nijholt and Gerrit van der Veer use the concept of situational awareness in their case studies to suggest challenges for the design and evaluation of online collaborative environments.

Chapter XLIII. A Scale of Affective Satisfaction in Online Learning Communities, 651Janet L. Holland, Emporia State University, USA

Janet Holland presents a scale of affective satisfaction, and illustrates its use in an online learning teaching intervention.

Chapter XLIV. Assessing the Social Network Health of Virtual Communities, p669David Hinds, Hinds & Associates, USARonald M. Lee, Florida International University, USA

David Hinds and Ronald M. Lee suggest how measuring the social “health” of virtual communities can be a useful socio-technical performance diagnostic for designers, managers and users.

Chapter XLV. Situated Evaluation of Socio-Technical Systems, p685 Bertram C. Bruce, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USAAndee Rubin, TERC, USAJunghyun An, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA

Bertram C. Bruce, Andee Rubin and Junghyun An introduce situated evaluation as an approach to evaluating innovation in socio-technical systems, with classroom uses of an electronic Quill as a test case.

Chapter XLVI. Cultural Appropriation of Software Design and Evaluation, p699Heike Winschiers-Theophilus, Polytechnic of Namibia, Namibia

Heike Winschiers-Theophilus finds that socio-technical systems whose intrinsic values clash with those of their target audience tend to be unused or unwanted, with the Namibian context as an example, so suggests designing socio-technical systems with target culture values in mind.

Section VII. The Future of Socio-Technical Systems

How will socio-technical systems evolve in the future?

Prologue The Future of Socio-Technical Systems by Charles Steinfield, Michigan State University, East Lansing, USA, p712 

Chapter XLVII. Resolving Wicked Problems through Collaboration, p715 Peter J. Denning, Naval Postgraduate School, USA

Peter J. Denning suggests how understanding “messy” problems can help future designers develop systems to support the types of collaboration needed to resolve them.

Chapter XLVIII. The Myth of the e-Commerce Serf to Sovereign Powershift, p731Rachel McLean, Manchester Metropolitan University Business School, UK

Rachel McLean suggests the view that e-commerce empowers customers is a myth, as it shifts responsibilities not power, so a true power shift in the culturally ingrained producer-consumer relationship still remains only a potential for the future.

Chapter XLIX. Teaching the Socio-Technical Practices of Tomorrow Today, p748, AlsoTheresa Dirndorfer Anderson, University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), Australia

Theresa Anderson reports experiences teaching a socio-technical course, with examples, to give ideas for those wishing to do the same in the future.

Chapter L. Socio-Technical Communities: From Informal to Formal? p763 Isa Jahnke, Dortmund University of Technology, Germany

Isa Jahnke suggests that today’s socio-technical systems will inevitably move from undefined, informal interactions to formal structures and rules, with what is initially enforced by social sanctions eventually being enforced by technological control.

Chapter LI. Future Living in a Participatory Way, p779Laurence Claeys, Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs, BelgiumJohan Criel, Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs, Belgium

Laurence Claeys and Johan Criel see the socio-technical gap as an opportunity rather than a problem for context aware applications, and use a “home of the future” empirical study from Belgium and the Netherlands to illustrate this.

Chapter LII. The Impact of Communications Technology on Trust, p794Paul Hodgson, British Telecom, UK

Paul Hodgson argues that communications technology in postmodern society leads to the atomization of experience, which reduces social trust, and that consequently we need future technologies that enhance trust for the benefit of society as whole.

Chapter LIII. Good and Evil in the Garden of Emerging Information Technologies, p805Kenneth E. Kendall, Rutgers University, USAJulie E. Kendall, Rutgers University, USA

Ken and Julie Kendall suggest that emergent technologies like widgets, mashups, gadgets, dashboards and push-pull technologies are double-edged swords, usable for good or ill, and formulate a checklist of critical questions for future socio-technical designers.