roundtable: FW: NSF - Information Technology, Culture, and Social Institutions (fwd)

roundtable: FW: NSF - Information Technology, Culture, and Social Institutions (fwd)

FW: NSF - Information Technology, Culture, and Social Institutions (fwd)

Patrice McDermott (patricem@RTK.NET)
Thu, 4 Sep 97 13:46:20 EDT 

Date: Thu,  4 Sep 97 13:46:20 EDT
From: Patrice McDermott <patricem@RTK.NET>
Subject: FW: NSF - Information Technology, Culture, and Social Institutions (fwd) 
To: tac@RTK.NET, roundtable@cni.org
Message-Id: <Chameleon.970904135319.patrice@patrice.rtknet.org>


FYI.
-------------------------------------
Patrice McDermott
patricem@rtk.net
OMB Watch
Date: 09/04/97
Time: 13:46:20
-------------------------------------

---------------Original Message---------------
Date: Fri, 22 Aug 1997 13:48:24 -0400
From: splattne@nsf.gov

People should be aware of a special funding opportunity at NSF about
information technology, culture and social institutions.  Here is the
flier.  Also see our webpage at

   http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/sber/anthro/

============================================================
National Science Foundation
Funding Opportunities in
Information Technology, Culture, and Social Institutions


The development of information technologies and new types of digital
content in all aspects of society has far exceeded our understanding
about how these new technologies have reshaped social organization, work
life, interaction patterns and culture.  In response to this
shortcoming, the Computer, Information Science, and Engineering
directorate (CISE) and the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences
directorate (SBE) as well as the Education and Human Resources
directorate (EHR) are encouraging multidisciplinary proposals for
research at the interface of behavioral and social science, education
research and information technology.  Proposals may be submitted on
standard forms (see the Grant Proposal Guide, NSF 95-27) to existing
programs (see the Guide to Programs NSF 95-138) as this notice calls
attention to existing funding opportunities. 

The proposed research should aim to advance our understanding of how
information technologies shape and are shaped by the cognitive, social
and cultural dimensions of groups, organizations, institutions, and
societies.  The driving force for this interaction is the widespread
proliferation of distributed computing with vastly increased processing,
communications, and storage capabilities.  Research should seek to
understand the impact of new forms of digital content and communications
accessible to wide segments of society as well as national and global
institutions such as nation states, multinational corporations and
financial institutions.  The methodological approach should be
appropriate to the unit of analysis and research questions.  For
example, a study of the impact on culture might focus on understanding
how people learn about and use information technology in real-life
situations, or on the interacting technological, social, and
organizational factors that facilitate or impede productive use and
learning.  A study of the impact of information technology on nation
states might focus on the changing nature of sovereignty.  Especially
welcome are proposals that aim to develop general explanations, through
grounded theory or other empirical approaches.  Social science
contributions to the design of systems affecting large segments of the
population are also welcome.  Examples include cognitive, cultural,
economic, ethical, interpersonal, political, sociological and spatial
factors that should be incorporated into systems designed for ordinary
citizens. 

We are interested in a broad range of studies on the behavioral, social
and cultural dimensions of new information technologies.  For example,
some possible research topics are listed below:

Ethnographic studies of how information technologies legitimize
people's identification with communities, and how human-computer
dynamics in work-places structure the work process to affect
productivity. 

Studies that examine economic institutions and organizations, including
organizational structure; the links between technology, agent
interaction, and productivity in firms and other organizations; and the
impact of information technology on the co-evolution of economic
institutions and cultural norms. 

Labor market issues related to information technology,
including its impact on income distribution, labor force
participation, investments in education and training, family
structure and the allocation of resources within the family.

Research on the productivity paradox.  Economists continue to argue
about why increases in U.S.  productivity have remained sluggish despite
large private sector investments in information technology.  What
empirical research particularly at the sectoral level could shed light
on this issue?

Research on the changing roles of key institutions.  Information and
communications technologies will create both threats and opportunities
for existing organizations.  For example, some universities may be able
to serve non-traditional students (e.g.,.  adult student who can't
attend an universities full-time) by expanding distance learning
services.  Others may lose students and tuition to "virtual
universities" or publishers that can offer courses at a lower cost per
credit hour.  Some have suggested that the functions of the university
(administration, degree-granting, instruction, physical facility) will
be "unbundled" How are key organizations responding to IT-related
challenges and opportunities and what theoretical principles explain the
change?

Studies of the spatial and geographical implications and behavior
associated with the spread and use of information technologies. 

Research to develop theories, methods, concepts, and principles that
provide foundations for making large-scale, collaborative, content-rich
applications effective in practice in their organizational and social
contexts. 

Research that examines the operation, impacts, and usage patterns of
organization-scale computing, content, and collaboration technologies
with the aim of feeding back resulting knowledge into new technologies
and new approaches toward integrating them in context. 

Research that examines the use of digital library resources in
education, science, and technology.  How does the immediacy and richness
of digital libraries and their associated tools change the nature of
research and education? How does the social conduct of science change
and how can these changes best be accommodated?

Studies of the research, design, development and implementation
processes that bring new information technologies into existence, and
the influence of such technologies on creativity, productivity, and
social life in a variety of settings, including schools, work places,
and homes. 

Research on how the cognitive capacities of humans interact with
information technologies to facilitate or inhibit their use. 

Research to examine and evaluate ethical norms in the development and
use of new information and communication technologies. 

Research on the roles that these technologies may play in social,
cultural, political and economic conflict, for example strengthening the
competitive position of some groups at the expense of others, or
providing new arenas in which some human beings may exert power over
others. 

Research to facilitate the development of laws and law-like rules
regulating access to, use of, and outcomes of using information
technology. 

Research on the impact of cultures and subcultures on the
institutionalization and integration of information technology as an
agent of change (for example, in schools and other workplaces. 

Research that examines the impact of information technology on quality
and overall performance in organizations, e.g.  through better
integration with customers, process improvement, or better coordination
of organizational subunits. 

Planning grants of $20,000 - $50,000 for 12-18 months are available to
assist in the preparation of multidisciplinary proposals that might
require collaboration between social and behavioral scientists and their
counterparts in computer science and engineering.  For example, social
scientists may want to work with researchers in large, multidisciplinary
NSF-funded projects focusing on information technologies such as the
digital libraries, collaboratories, partnerships for advanced computing
infrastructure (PACI), very high-performance network services (vBNS),
Engineering Research Centers, and Science and Technology Centers.  (see
http://www.nsf.gov/, http://www.cise.nsf.gov/ and http://www.eng.nsf.gov/)

Other examples of possible research in the area of information
technology and culture can be found in the workshop report "Culture,
Society and Advanced Information Technology", available from the Computing 
Research Association (info@cra.org, fax: (202) 667-1066) or from the 
American Anthropological Association (peggy@mhs.compuserve.com,
fax: (703) 528-3546), and on the World Wide Web at

     http://cra.org/Reports/Aspects/

The foundation hopes to make about 10 awards in FY 1998 whose average
duration is about 2-3 years and whose average total award size is
$50,000 - $500,000, subject to available funds and proposals of high
scientific merit. 

----------End of Original Message----------

[CNI Home Page]