2013 Digital Societies and Social Technologies (DSST) Summer Institute
(a joint effort of the Consortium for Science of Sociotechnical Systems (CSST) and the
Summer Social Webshop)
July 28 – August 1, 2013
University of Maryland -- College Park, Maryland USA
APPLICATION DEADLINE: April 5, 2013
MOOCs, Education and learning; personal health and well-being; open innovation, eScience,
and citizen science; co-production, open source, and new forms of work; cultural heritage
and information access; energy management and climate change; civic hacking, engagement
and government; disaster response; cybersecurity and privacy – these are just a few
problem domains where effective design and robust understanding of complex sociotechnical
systems is critical. To meet these challenges a trans-disciplinary community of scholars
has come together from fields as wide ranging as CSCW, HCI, social computing, organization
studies, information visualization, social informatics, sociology, information systems,
medical informatics, computer science, ICT for development, education, learning science,
journalism, and political science.
Through summer institutes (CSST), extended workshops (Social Webshop), preconference
workshops at a wide variety of venues, and other activities (Digital Societies and
Technology Research Coordination Network) this community of researchers from academia and
industry has developed a strong focus on problems and opportunities arising from the
interplay of social and technological systems which span individuals, groups,
organizations, and societies.
The 2013 Summer Institute builds on this tradition to strengthen and expand this diverse
community by bringing together graduate students, post doctoral students, faculty, and
other researchers in four groups at the University of Maryland, College Park on July
28-August 1:
Doctoral students, post doctoral students, pre-tenure faculty, and early career
researchers – Through mentoring, peer networking, and skill-building tutorials, doctoral
students, post doctoral students, pre-tenure faculty, and early career researchers will
identify substantive ways that the theories, approaches, and tools within the larger
community can advance their work with the design and study of sociotechnical systems.
Established researchers – Prior summer institute/workshop participants and established
researchers will network with other researchers (senior and junior), explore ideas and new
directions, shape emerging research agendas, articulate critical challenges, and share
knowledge about practices, tools, and approaches which have the potential to advance the
design and study of sociotechnical systems.
Emerging multi-disciplinary research teams – Nascent groups of researchers seeking to
develop cross-disciplinary collaborations will work with peers and mentors to refine
problem statements and research goals; connect with collaborators with complementary
skills and interests; and create actionable research agendas and funding proposals.
Preference will be given to groups interested in designing and studying sociotechnical
systems that address societal grand challenges such as (but not limited to) healthcare;
energy management and climate change; cybersecurity and privacy; education and learning;
disaster response; technology development and innovation; economic development and work;
and civic engagement and participation.
Research infrastructure development teams – Groups of researchers interested in creating
computational or analytic tools, data resources, training materials or other
infrastructure to support the design and study of sociotechnical systems will work with
one another, other Summer institute participants, and local developers. These
infrastructure “hackathon” sessions will result in the creation of use cases, prototypes,
draft materials, and when possible deployable systems and resources.
APPLYING FOR DSST 2013
Applications are encouraged from all academic, industry, NGO, and public sector
organizations worldwide. To apply for the 2013 Summer Institute, select the group that
best fits your needs and situation and send the appropriate materials to the Summer
Institute co-coordinator (Brian Butler) at bsbutler(a)umd.edu by April 5th, 2013:
* Doctoral students, post doctoral students, pre-tenure faculty, and early career
researchers should send their CV and a short (~ 1 page) response to: “How does/will your
work advance our ability to design and understand critical sociotechnical systems?”
Several core references should be included to situate your work within the larger research
community. Doctoral students should also provide a letter of recommendation from their
advisor/department chair indicating their expected graduation date.
* Established researchers should send their CV and a short (~ 1 page) response to: “What
are the most interesting challenges and opportunities related to the design and study of
critical sociotechnical systems? What activity (30 minutes to 4 hours long) could you run
that would help the Summer Institute participants better engage these challenges and
opportunities?” Proposed activities can be for any (or all) Summer Institute participants
and might include, but are not limited to: focused presentations; brainstorming sessions;
in-depth problem descriptions; method, tool, or data tutorials; or research agenda setting
exercises.
* Emerging multi-disciplinary research teams should apply as a group, sending their CVs
and a short (~ 1 page) response to: “What is the research focus/problem domain? What
types of activities/studies are needed to engage that domain? How will pursuing this
agenda help advance our ability to design and understand critical sociotechnical systems?”
References potential funding sources can be included, if known, to situate the proposal
within the larger research community. Groups invited to the Summer Institute will have
between 4-6 people. However, only 3 individuals need to be part of an application for it
to be considered (assistance will be provided prior to the Summer Institute to help
invited teams recruit additional participants as needed). Preference will be given to
cross-institutional teams in which junior/mid-career researchers play significant
leadership roles.
* Research infrastructure development teams should apply as a group, sending their CVs and
a short (~ 1 page) response to: “What is the problem you are seeking to address? What
will you do to address that problem? How will creating these technologies, tools,
materials or infrastructure improve our ability to design and understand critical
sociotechnical systems?” References to examples from other domains can be included to
situate your proposal. Teams invited for the Summer Institute will have between 4-6
people from multiple disciplines and institutions. However, only 3 individuals need to be
part of an application to be considered (assistance will be provided prior to the Summer
Institute to help invited teams recruit additional participants as needed).
Lodging, meals, and other onsite costs will be covered for all Summer Institute
participants. Limited travel support is available, if needed, for participants from US
and Canadian institutions (with preference given to doctoral and post-doctoral students).
Travel support may also be available for other Summer Institute participants. To be
considered for all available financial support you should provide the following
information when you apply:
* What college, university, or organization are you affiliated with?
* What is your primary department affiliation?
* If you are applying from a Canadian university, are you a member of the GRAND network?
Materials should be sent to Summer Institute co-coordinator (Brian Butler) at
bsbutler(a)umd.edu by April 5th, 2013. Applications will be reviewed by the Summer
Institute Advisory Group beginning April 6th, 2013 using the following criteria:
* Clear articulation of the hoped-for contribution to the theory, practice, or design of
sociotechnical systems
* Likelihood of Summer Institute participation providing significant practical benefit for
the individual/team
* Contribution to a balanced and diverse group of participants
The number of participants selected will depend on the available funding and the fit
between applicants’ interests and goals.
For more information about the Summer Institute, contact the Summer Institute
co-coordinators, Brian Butler (bsbutler(a)umd.edu) and Susan Winter (sjwinter(a)umd.edu). For
information about the broader community of researchers interested in design and study of
sociotechnical systems, see: CSST (
www.sociotech.net), Social Webshop
(
http://www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/webshop2012/), the "Researchers of the
Socio-Technical" Facebook group, or the CSST listserv (csst(a)listserv.syr.edu).
DSST 2013 ADVISORY GROUP
Diane Bailey (University of Texas, Austin)
John Bertot (University of Maryland, College Park)
Jeremy Birnholtz (Northwestern University)
Amy Bruckman (Georgia Tech)
John Carroll (Penn State University)
Derrick Cogburn (American University)
Nosh Contractor (Northwestern University)
Dan Cosley (Cornell University)
Jonathon Cummings (Duke University)
Laura Dabbish (Carnegie Mellon University)
Leslie DeChurch (Georgia Tech)
Paul Dourish (University of California, Irvine)
Nicole Ellison (University of Michigan)
Susan Fussell (Cornell University)
Matt Germonprez (University of Nebraska at Omaha)
Sean Goggins (Drexel University)
Jen Golbeck (University of Maryland, College Park)
Rebecca Grinter (Georgia Tech)
Anatoliy Gruzd (Dalhousie University)
Caroline Haythornthwaite (University of British Columbia)
Libby Hemphill (Illinois Institute of Technology)
Pamela Hinds (Stanford University)
Erik Johnston (Arizona State University)
Nicolas Jullien (TELECOM Bretagne)
Sara Kiesler (Carnegie Mellon University)
Aniket Kittur (Carnegie Mellon University)
Mark Klein (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Bob Kraut (Carnegie Mellon University)
Karim Lakhani (Harvard University)
Natalia Levina (New York Univesity)
Wayne Lutters (University of Maryland, Baltimore County)
Kalle Lyytinen (Case Western Reserve)
Gloria Mark (University of California, Irvine)
Anne Massey (Indiana University)
Bonnie Nardi (University of California, Irvine)
Mark Newman (University of Michigan)
Gary Olson (University of California, Irvine)
Felipe Ortega (University Rey Juan Carlos)
Jenny Preece (University of Maryland, College Park)
David Ribes (Georgetown University)
Tony Salvador (Intel)
Steve Sawyer (Syracuse University)
Ben Shneiderman (University of Maryland, College Park)
Marc Smith (Social Media Research Foundation)
Charles Steinfeld (Michigan State University)
Kate Stewart (University of Maryland, College Park)
Susan Straus (Rand Corporation)
Andrea Tapia (Penn State University)
Michael Twidale (University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign)
Youngjin Yoo (Temple University)
DSST 2013 SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
The 2013 DSST Summer Institute is offered in conjunction with the following partners:
* The Consortium for the Science of Sociotechnical Systems (CSST),
* The Summer Social Webshop
Financial support for DSST 2013 is being provided by the following Enabling Sponsors:
* U.S. National Science Foundation via Digital Societies and Technology Research
Coordination Network (DST-RCN)
* GRAND-NCE
Facilities, administrative, and logistical support for DSST 2013 is provide by the
following Host Sponsors:
* The University of Maryland, College of Information Studies (UMD iSchool)
*The Center for the Advanced Study of Communities and Information (CASCI)
* Human Computer Interaction Lab (HCIL),
* Information Policy and Access Center (iPAC)