Participatory Interaction Modeling of Online Geographic Decision Making

公众参与是行使民主的重要组成部分，例如，参与旨在从社区内的土地、交通、水资源改善等备选方案中进行选择的公共决策环境。不幸的是，由于时间和会议的限制，参加的人很少。在线地理信息系统技术在使更大的居民群体能够参与决策方面大有可为；然而，软件系统的设计一直是临时的，因此在衡量大量人的参与方面几乎没有成功的证明和/或报告。华盛顿大学的Timothy Nyerges博士将为在线公共地理决策的参与式互动建模开发一个框架，其目的有三：(1)开发一个以计算为基础的、以人-机-人互动(HCHI)过程为特征的公众参与模型，(2)改进被称为“小道消息”的地理视觉分析技术，以评估参与性的HCHI数据，以及(3)开发量化描述公众参与HCHI过程的尺度度量和绩效指标。计算模型是使用一个数据库系统开发的，该数据库系统存储了之前两次现场实验的数据。一个“小道消息”原型可视化软件正在扩展，以拓宽和深化对HCHI过程的表示。正在制定公众参与的衡量标准和业绩指标，对网上公众参与的成功程度进行量化评估。该项目通过开发一个框架使社会受益，该框架将帮助软件设计者和实践者构建基于网络的地理决策支持系统，该系统可以将潜在的群体参与扩展到非常大的人群，在更广泛的地理区域上扩展到更大和更多样化的社会部分，并在所提供的话语的技术内容中包括更强大的技术能力。除了这些广泛的影响外，该项目还包括在地理研讨会课程中的研究生和本科生研究人员，分析和全面评估参与性系统如何支持弱势群体和传统上代表性不足的群体。这项研究的结果，在数据、介绍、初步报告和出版物方面，正在通过一个项目网站传播。

Public participation, for example participating in public decision making contexts meant to choose among alternatives for land, transportation, water resource improvements within a community, is an important part of exercising democracy. Unfortunately, few people participate because of time and meeting constraints. Online geographic information systems technologies have held great promise for enabling larger groups of residents to engage in decision making; however, designs for software systems have been ad hoc, thus few successes have been demonstrated and/or reported for measuring participation to large numbers of people. Dr. Timothy Nyerges at the University of Washington will develop a framework for participatory interaction modeling of online public geographic decision making by using three objectives: (1) developing a computationally-based model of public participation that characterizes human-computer-human interaction (HCHI) processes, (2) refining geovisual analytic technique called a 'grapevine' for evaluating participatory HCHI data, and (3) developing scaling metrics and performance indicators that quantiatively characterize public participation HCHI processes. The computational model is being developed using a database system that stores data from two previous field experiments. A 'grapevine' prototype visualization software is being extended to broaden and deepen representations of HCHI process. Scaling metrics and performance indicators for public participation are being developed that provide a quantitative assessment of the success for online public participation. This project benefits society by developing a framework that will help software designers and practitioners construct cyber-enabled geographic decision support systems that can scale potential group participation out to very large groups of people, up to larger and more diverse parts of society over wider geographic areas, and greater to include more robust technical competence within the technical content of the discourse being offered. In addition to those broad-based impacts, the project includes graduate and undergraduate student researchers in geography seminar classes in analysis and overall evaluation about how participatory systems can support disadvantaged and traditionally underrepresented groups. Results of the study, in terms of data, presentations, preliminary reports, and publications, are being disseminating via a project web site.