Activity Theory to explore transitioning to agile methods: contribution to #XP2020

Posted on June 8, 2020 by Hazel Hall

The 21st International Conference on Agile Software Development XP2020 takes place this week between Monday 8th and Friday 12th June. Normally delegates would be gathering in Copenhagen to participate in the event. Like many conferences this year, however, the conference has switched to a virtual format.

Amongst the work to be presented at the conference is a paper by Centre for Social Informatics colleagues Pritam Chita, Peter Cruickshank and Dr Colin Smith, with Dr Kendall Richards of Edinburgh Napier University’s Centre for Computing Education Research. Continue reading →

Bruce Ryan and Gemma Webster present on information avoidance and diabetes at Information Science Trends: Health Information Behavior

Posted on June 5, 2020 by Hazel Hall

Next week on Monday 8th June Centre for Social Informatics colleagues Dr Bruce Ryan and Dr Gemma Webster are presenting a poster at Information Science Trends: Health Information Behavior. This free virtual event takes place over 3 days between 8th and 10th June in three 3-hour sessions. It has been organised by the European Chapter of the Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIST). Continue reading →

Rachel Salzano contributes to the work of the Alan Turing Institute

Posted on May 14, 2020 by Hazel Hall

Rachel Salzano

The Alan Turing Institute is the UK’s national institute for data science and artificial intelligence. It was established in 2015 with headquarters at the British Library in London. The work of the Institute is achieved through collaborations between universities, businesses, and public and third sector organisations to address some of the biggest challenges in science, society and the economy.

Currently Rachel Salzano, a PhD student within the Centre for Social Informatics at Edinburgh Napier University, is contributing to the institute’s research on detecting and understanding harmful content online. She has been employed by the Institute in two roles. Continue reading →

How useful are social media for job hunting? Publication in press with the Journal of Information Science

Posted on May 7, 2020 by Hazel Hall

‘Using social media during job search: the case of 16-24 year olds in Scotland‘ is about the the value of social media in providing information opportunities to young people seeking employment. This co-authored paper has recently been accepted for inclusion in the Journal of Information Science.

Based on an analysis of interview and focus group data, Dr John Mowbray (University of Glasgow) and I reveal that: Continue reading →

A month in coronavirus captivity

Posted on April 30, 2020 by Hazel Hall

I rarely write personally on this blog. That said, I have used this medium to relay some very personal news in the past, and it currently feels like the right place to reflect on these first few weeks of coronavirus lockdown. I also thought that it would be interesting to share some of the photographs that I have been taking in the limited amount of time that I have been out of my house during this period, one of which has been selected by the BBC as one of its series Your pictures of Scotland for 24th April to 1st May 2020. Continue reading →

Hyperlocal democracy, tacit knowledge sharing, digital youth participation, and online reputation building and management: four more papers in JoLIS

Posted on April 20, 2020 by Hazel Hall

The last four articles of the seven that I developed with Centre for Social Informatics colleagues from the conference papers that we presented at i3 in 2017 have worked their way through the publication process, and can now be found in the print form with assigned volume, issue and page numbers in the Journal of Librarianship and Information Science. The article titles and themes are: Continue reading →

Digital identity security information practices of citizens (DISIPRAC) report now available

Posted on April 7, 2020 by Hazel Hall

Digital identity security information practices of citizens (DISIPRAC) is a project led by Peter Cruickshank.

On Thursday 27th February, Peter and our (then) Centre for Social Informatics colleague Dr Frances Ryan (now at Aberdeen University) hosted a workshop on the DISIPRAC project themes. This took place at the Edinburgh Napier University Merchiston campus. Twelve people, all of whom help adults in the community, joined Peter and Frances to discuss three scenarios associated with facilitating access to services provided by UK, Scottish, and local governments. Continue reading →

A new role at the UN for Dr Alicja Pawluczuk

Posted on April 1, 2020 by Hazel Hall

Dr Alicja Pawluczuk

Congratulations to our PhD graduate Dr Alicja Pawluczuk who today (1st April 2020) starts a new work role as Young Information and Communication Technologies and Development Fellow at the United Nations University Institute in Macau.

Over the next twelve months, Alicja will be examining current approaches to digital inclusion measurement, and investigating digital inclusion practitioners’ narratives of their experience of digital inclusion measurement. The objective of Alicja’s fellowship is to analyse the state-of-the-art of digital inclusion measurement and evaluation on the basis of a systematic literature review. It is anticipated that outcomes of this research will inform UN policy-making on issues related to ICTs and sustainable development. Continue reading →

New jobs for Dr Frances Ryan and (almost Dr) Leo Appleton

Posted on March 31, 2020 by Hazel Hall

Dr Frances Ryan, who graduated with her PhD last summer, and Leo Appleton, who will cross the stage to pick up his doctoral degree certificate on 1st July 2020 (coronavirus permitting), have recently been successful in applications for new jobs. Congratulations to them both! Continue reading →

Why bother to share information for little visible return? Publication in press with Information Research

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Hazel Hall

Talking to imagined citizens? Information sharing practices and proxies for e-participation in hyperlocal democratic settings has recently been accepted for publication in Information Research.

This work is concerned with the extent to which existing models of information sharing based on the tenets of exchange are applicable across a full range of contexts. Specifically, in this paper, Peter Cruickshank and I deploy an information sharing practice-based approach to explore the means by which hyperlocal representatives in Scotland handle their information sharing roles, and how they address their relationships with online ‘lurker’ audiences. Continue reading →