Dissertation Research: Dynamics of Globalization in the Philippine Scientific Community

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This Science and Technology Studies Dissertation Improvement Grant examines the impact of the Internet on science in developing areas, using concepts and theoretical perspectives at the intersection of science and technology studies, the sociology of development, and social network analysis. It seeks to shed light on the under-researched aspects of science in the developing world, specifically the simultaneous influence of different "scientific metropoles" on the dynamics of Internet diffusion and knowledge production in peripheral scientific communities. This proposal seeks to examine and characterize the diffusion of the Internet and its impact on the dynamics of science in Philippine science. It focuses on the communication behavior, personal networks, collaboration patterns, productivity, and professional activities of local scientists in three Philippine scientific communities. It focuses particularly on Philippine scientific communities because their dynamics and orientation, as well as their personnel and training are influenced by three technologically, economically, and culturally dominant "scientific metropoles": Australia, Japan, and the United States. The study seeks to know whether or not the location of academic training conditions patterns of Internet adoption, communication behavior, personal networks, collaboration, and productivity. It is guided by the following research questions: (1) Are there differences in the diffusion of the Internet in Philippine science? (2) If so, what are the bases for digital inequality? (3) Are there differences in Internet adoption behavior, scientific communication behavior, personal networks, collaboration patterns, and productivity of Filipino scientists trained in the Philippines, Australia, Japan, and the United States? These questions are based, in part, on a recently completed analysis of scientists in Ghana, Kenya, and India (Ynalvez et al., 2004). However, these three locations are all relatively homogeneous in their relationship to a single scientific metropole. The Philippines, owing to a history of diverse colonial involvements, exhibits relationships to several metropoles, rendering it a strategic research location for the study of postcolonial influence. To answer these questions, the student will survey a sample of 300 Filipino scientists in state research universities and government research institutes. The study will shed light on the influence of academic training in the metropoles of Australia, Japan, and the United States on the networks of Filipino scientists. The broader impacts of the study relate to digital divide issues of critical importance to the globalization of science. The study will provide a detailed guide to current networks and partnerships both within this underrepresented scientific community and between the Philippine and international communities. These results will be disseminated broadly to enhance understanding and serve as the basis for policies integrating developing areas into the global scientific community.