The Evolution of Social Informatics Research (1984-2013): Challenges and Opportunities

This chapter discusses the changes and growth experienced in the domain of social informatics research. Social informatics has grown from a small group of researchers seeking to reject technological determinism to a broad and interdisciplinary area of research in which the interactions between social and technical variables are considered in a variety of contexts. Four primary periods are identified and defined, including: foundational work, development and expansion, coherence and cooperation, and diversification. Significant concepts and findings are discussed, as well as the tensions within the field and their implications for the future