CHS: Small: Collaborative Research: Catalyzing Youth Civic Engagement Through Innovations in Social Computing

这项研究将设计，开发和评估新的智能手机应用程序，帮助年轻人探索和利用他们的社交网络参与集体行动，并评估这一行动的影响。 从通过使用Twitter标签参与社会运动，到通过Facebook进行集体组织，社交计算工具已经催化了新的和令人兴奋的公民参与形式（个人和集体为解决社会问题所做的努力）。虽然从历史上看，让青年参与公民行动一直是一项挑战，但社交计算平台为青年提供了一种与媒体相关的方式来解决对他们至关重要的问题。然而，尽管公民在线参与的机会增加了，但青年人可能难以驾驭他们的社交网络，这对理解和利用网络中的社会资本，即可以支持集体行动的有益资源，造成了挑战。本研究探讨如何互动的可视化青年的社交网络可以帮助青年更有效地了解和利用他们的网络中的社会资本。这种形象化可以通过方便获得关于社会关系的丰富和复杂的信息来支持公民参与，帮助青年评估他们通过在线公民行动产生的影响，使他们能够对未来的活动做出有效的决定。这项工作将包括设计、开发和评估两款新颖的智能手机应用程序。尽管有大量的文献从算法的角度来研究如何最好地可视化这些网络，但人们，特别是年轻人，如何解释网络可视化，以及网络可视化是否或何时可以增强对社会资本的获取和利用，却知之甚少。该项目将提供新的实证研究结果和新的软件工具，以填补这一研究空白。此外，尽管复杂的网络数据越来越多地被打包以供公众消费，但是对于如何有效地这样做几乎没有标准，特别是在小屏幕真实的资产显著地放大了可视化挑战的移动的可视化的上下文中。这项研究将为如何在人们越来越多地用于与数据交互的移动的平台上为外行观众最好地可视化网络数据提供新的知识。这项工作将对设计的界面如何最好地管理网络数据的复杂性进行实证评估，以增强认知、行动和赋权感。这项工作将最终在一个概念框架，以指导设计的社会计算工具，为青年公民engagement.This奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。

This research will design, develop, and evaluate novel smartphone applications that help youth explore and leverage their social networks to engage in collective action, and assess the impact of this action. From affiliation with social movements through the use of Twitter hashtags, to collective organizing through Facebook, social computing tools have catalyzed new and exciting forms of civic engagement (efforts taken by individuals and collectives to address issues of societal concern). While historically it has been challenging to engage youth in civic action, social computing platforms offer a media-relevant way for youth to address issues that matter to them. However, despite increased opportunities for civic engagement online, youth can have difficulty navigating their social networks, which creates challenges for understanding and putting to use the social capital within networks, that is, the beneficial resources that can support collective action. This research examines how interactive visualizations of youth's social networks can help youth more effectively understand and put to use the social capital within their networks. Such visualizations may support civic engagement by easing access to the rich and complex information about social ties, helping youth evaluate the impact they have through online civic action, preparing them to make effective decisions about future activities. The work will include the design, development, and evaluation of two novel smartphone applications. Although there is a large literature on how best to visualize these networks from an algorithmic perspective, very little is known about how people, especially young people, interpret network visualizations, nor whether or when network visualizations may enhance access to and utilization of social capital. This project will contribute new empirical findings and novel software tools to fill this research gap. Additionally, although complex network data is increasingly packaged for public consumption, there are few standards for how to do so effectively, particularly in the context of mobile visualizations where small screen real estate dramatically amplifies the visualization challenge. The research will contribute new knowledge regarding how best to visualize network data for lay audiences, on the mobile platforms that people are increasingly using to interact with data. This work will yield empirical assessments of how designed interfaces can best manage the complexities of networked data in order to amplify cognition, action, and feelings of empowerment. This work will culminate in a conceptual framework to guide the design of social computing tools for youth civic engagement.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.