Social Science Perspectives on e-Science
Organisers
Dr Ralph Schroeder, University of Oxford, UK
Dr Nicholas Jankowski, Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
Summary
Developments in the area of e-Science, both the natural and social sciences, are widespread and substantial. Although there are early attempts to analyze these developments from social science perspectives, the field of study is still new and undefined. This workshop, organized by the Oxford e-Social Science (OeSS) ESRC node, is designed to provide an overview of social science approaches to the investigation of e-Science as well as reports on initial studies of e-Science development. The workshop will cover a wide range of perspectives and types of studies. The aim is to identify common and diverging strategies, and thus contribute to mapping this emergent field and identifying areas for future research.
Questions to be raised in the workshop can be clustered around four themes:
- Theoretical issues: How do different social science approaches, such as the sociology of science and technology and CSCW, investigate the various forms of e-Science? Are there fundamental differences, or is there broad agreement, in the study of the social shaping and implications of e-Science?
- Methodology: What kinds of social science methods are appropriate for the study of e-Science: Qualitative or quantitative? Case study based? Surveys? What can social science contribute to: Critical evaluation? Support for innovation? Guidance for policy? Insights valuable for the sociology of science and technology?
- Disciplinary approaches: How should we study communication and collaboration in the e-Sciences: From the point of view of work organization? Media studies? And how to study infrastructures and networks? What concepts are appropriate for the study of different e-Sciences?
- Policy and practice: What findings exist to explain the successes and failures of e-Science projects? And to explain the constraints and prospects for e-Science as a whole? What are the implications for theory, policy and practice?
