Designing for Data Autonomy Through Decentralisation

拟议的研究旨在探索数据自治和去中心化系统的交集，重点关注用户如何在去中心化范式促进的在线社交媒体互动中保持对个人数据及其使用的更大控制。行为工程和错误信息的传播已经成为社交媒体平台上的一个严峻挑战。为用户提供更透明、更可信的信息，是人工智能时代最突出的挑战之一。该项目强调以用户为中心的方法，旨在构建一个新的分散的社交媒体框架，开创一个以更加分散和自主的方式管理个人数据的时代。该项目将涉及了解用户在新型社交媒体范式中开发和行使数据自主权的障碍，创建新的负责任的人工智能推荐系统，透明的数据治理模型，以及参与式设计方法，以增强用户数据自主权。它还将为英国及其他地区当前的工业最佳实践发展以及监管和政策发展提供投入。该项目属于EPSRC的“信息和通信技术”研究领域，其主题是“人工智能、数字化和数据”。该项目与牛津马丁学院道德网络和数据架构（EWADA）项目有联系。在本研究项目中，我们有以下潜在的研究问题：当前用户如何看待分散社交媒体中的数据自治概念，他们对最佳支持机制的需求是什么？用户对分散的数据共享和管理结构的理解和偏好是什么？他们如何设想理想的数据治理和社会交互范式？在去中心化的社交媒体中，为了增强用户的自主权和对数据的控制，哪些功能或设计最能引起用户的共鸣？这些研究问题背后的驱动力是掌握一般用户如何在分散系统的背景下解释和评估数据自主权的冲动。这些基础知识对于指导框架和工具的设计至关重要，这些框架和工具可以增强用户控制和数据自主权。研究过程将需要深入研究用户对去中心化系统的价值观，同时也要了解他们在完全自治和易用性之间的连续体中导航的意愿。总而言之，该项目努力从多个角度探索分散数据管理领域：数据自治，数据隐私，问责制和数据共享。这项调查是新颖的，因为之前的工作并没有严格研究用户对以增强数据自主性为中心的分散系统的看法。确保用户不仅能够控制他们的个人数据，而且支持这种自主权的底层系统是透明的、有弹性的和用户友好的，这一点至关重要。

The proposed research aims to probe the intersection of data autonomy and decentralised systems, focusing on how users can retain greater control over their personal data and its uses during their online social media interactions facilitated by decentralised paradigms. The spread of behavioural engineering and misinformation has become an acute challenge on social media platforms. Providing users with more transparent and trustworthy information is emerging as one of the most outstanding challenges in the age of AI. Emphasising a user-centric methodology, the project seeks to architect a novel decentralised social media framework, ushering in an era where personal data is managed in a more decentralised and autonomous manner. The project will involve the understanding of barriers for users to develop and exercise data autonomy in new types of social media paradigms, the creation of new responsible AI recommendation systems, transparent data governance models, and methodologies for participatory designs to enhance user data autonomy. It will also provide inputs to current industrial best practice development and regulatory and policy developments in the UK and beyond. This project falls within the EPSRC "information and communication technologies" research area and its themes of "artificial intelligence, digitisation and data". The project has connections with the Oxford Martin School Ethical Web and Data Architecture (EWADA) project.In this research project, we have the following potential research questions:How do current users perceive the concept of data autonomy within decentralised social media, and what are their needs for optimal support mechanisms?What are users' understandings and preferences concerning decentralised data sharing and management structures, and how do they envision their ideal data governance and social interaction paradigms?What features or designs resonate most with users when aiming for enhanced autonomy and control over their data within decentralised social media?The driving force behind these research questions is the urge to grasp how general users interpret and value data autonomy in the context of decentralised systems. This foundational knowledge will be critical in guiding the design of frameworks and tools that augment user control and data autonomy. The research process will necessitate delving into users' values regarding decentralised systems, while also comprehending their willingness to navigate the continuum between complete autonomy and ease-of-use.To summarise, this project endeavours to explore the realms of decentralised data management from multiple angles: data autonomy, data privacy, accountability, and data sharing. This investigation is novel as prior works have not rigorously studied user perceptions of decentralised systems centred around enhancing data autonomy. It is of paramount importance to ensure users not only have control over their personal data but also that the underlying systems supporting this autonomy are transparent, resilient, and user-friendly.