Understanding Cross-Boundary Knowledge Networks in the Context of Information-Intensive Transnational Problems

世界各国政府正在朝着一个更复杂的全球政治、社会和经济依赖网络发展，这在很大程度上是由信息和通信技术（ICT）不断扩展的能力所驱动的。信息通信技术已经变得如此无处不在，并与社会行为相结合，以至于社会和技术互动之间的区别充其量只是任意的。一个街头抗议者用手机拍下一张照片，并立即通过电子邮件发送到世界各地，他可能没有想到电脑，但他使用的是一个巨大的计算系统。这些社会和技术互动和关系的潜力有可能改变政治（伊朗），经济（eBay）和组织行为（AirNow）。这些新功能支持高度基于计算的社会系统，这些系统必须在不断发展的全球依赖网络中工作。各国政府通过共同构建新的知识共享系统，努力打击恐怖主义，管理空气质量，促进国际贸易。这些新形式的基于计算的社会系统的跨国影响仍然知之甚少，相关的威胁和机会也是如此。美国和其他国家必须培养出受过方法论工具培训的学者，以便有效地研究与基于计算的国际社会体系直接相关的研究问题。国际参与需要深入了解这些新系统如何影响国家和文化应对公共需求的方式，以及如何在应对空气污染等跨国问题时相互参与。这笔赠款将开始用于开发新的社会信息和通信技术模型和工具，以实现以空气污染为重点的跨地理和政治边界的基于计算的知识共享。这将基于对目前和拟议的空气质量监测和报告系统国际合作努力的研究。该项目包括美国、墨西哥和中国在空气质量监测和报告系统领域的比较和跨国工作。以下研究问题将指导这项工作：o不同国家的参与者如何看待参与政府间信息和知识共享系统的维度、利益相关者、利益和风险？o这些看法有何异同？什么样的文化、政治、经济和社会因素可以解释它们？o参与者如何尝试建立对技术、背景、术语、流程和突发事件的共同理解，从而产生有效行动的能力？哪些策略、工具和行为更有可能导致成功的国际知识网络，使个人、组织和社区受益？o哪些准备工作、方法和工具最适合于研究这些问题？这一建议开始建立一个跨文化调查和实证案例研究的知识库，以了解新的社会信息和通信技术系统如何用于信息密集型国际问题。个案研究和跨个案分析将提供新的比较材料，并有助于改进跨文化研究的方法。案例分析将导致新的可测试的信息流模型，伴随着跨越国界和文化的相互作用和依赖关系，以及未来的研究议程，以完善两个模型和methods.Broader ImpactsThis工作扩展信息共享和整合研究跨国设置中，两个或两个以上的国家共享一个共同的问题，需要或倡议的责任。此外，该计划将扩大大学网络，使教师和学生能够对国际或全球进口问题进行研究，对文化因素有更深入的了解，并采用严格的方法。这一能力建设特点将以国际科学伙伴关系的形式产生长期影响。与作为研究主持人和顾问的政府官员的联系不仅提供研究背景和场所，还提供分享研究结果的机会，为更具文化意识的公共政策和政府做法提供信息。该项目还将为教学案例、课程模块和其他课程材料奠定基础。

The governments of the world are evolving toward a more complex global network of political, societal, and economic dependencies, driven in large part by the expanding capabilities of information and communication technologies (ICT). ICT has become so ubiquitous and integrated with social behavior that the distinction between social and technical interactions becomes arbitrary at best. A street protester who snaps a camera phone picture and emails it instantly across the world may not be thinking about computers, but is using an enormous computing system nonetheless. The potential of these social and technical interactions and relationships has the potential to transform political (witness Iran), economic (witness eBay) and organizational behavior (witness AirNow). These new capabilities support highly computing-based social systems that must work within the evolving global network of dependencies. Governments strive to combat terrorism, manage air quality, and promote international commerce by jointly constructing new knowledge sharing systems. The transnational effects of these new forms of computing based social systems remain poorly understood, as do the related threats and opportunities. The US and others must produce scholars trained in methodological tools to work effectively on research questions associated directly with international computing-based social systems. International engagement demands deep understanding of how these new systems affect the way nations and cultures respond to public needs and engage one another in response to transnational problems, like air pollution. This grant will begin to develop new social ICT models and tools for computing-based knowledge sharing across geographic and political boundaries focused on air pollution. This will be based on study of current and proposed international efforts at collaboration on air quality monitoring and reporting systems. It encompasses both comparative and transnational work in the domain of air quality monitoring and reporting systems in the US, Mexico, and China.The following research questions will guide the work:o How do participants in different countries perceive the dimensions, stakeholders, benefits, and risks of engaging in intergovernmental systems for information and knowledge sharing?o What are the similarities and differences in these perceptions? What cultural, political, economic, and social factors might account for them?o How do the participants attempt to create shared understanding of technologies, context, terms, processes, and contingencies that generate capabilities for effective action?o Which strategies, tools, and behaviors are more likely to lead to successful international knowledge networks that benefit individuals, organizations, and communities?o What preparation, methods and tools are best suited for research on these questions?Intellectual meritThis proposal begins to build a knowledge base of cross-cultural investigations and empirical case studies of how new social ICT systems can be used on information-intensive international problems. The case studies and cross-case analyses will provide new comparative material and contribute to improved methodologies for cross-cultural research. The case analyses will lead to new testable models of information flow that accompany interactions and dependencies that cross national boundaries and cultures, as well as a future research agenda to refine both models and the methodologies.Broader ImpactsThis work extends information sharing and integration research to cross-national settings in which two or more countries share responsibility for a common problem, need, or initiative. In addition, the program will enlarge a collegial network and equip faculty and students to conduct research on problems of international or global import with deeper understanding of cultural factors and with the application of rigorous methodologies. This capacity-building feature will have long-lasting effects in the form of international science partnerships. Links to government officials as research hosts and advisors will provide not only research context and venues, but also opportunities to share findings that inform more culturally-aware public policies and government practices. The project will also lay the groundwork for teaching cases, course modules, and other curricular material.