I’ve recently been thinking and writing about digital activism research research methodologies and better ways of creating knowledge. Towards that end, here’s a simple standard for research and knowledge creation in the digital age:
- Open Process: crowdsourcing, resource-sharing, collaboration, publishing raw data and in-process versions of analysis, transparent methodology
- Open Product: publication (of data and analysis) with little or no restrictions on use
The aim of these standards is to:
- Maximize: information-sharing, data access, number of researchers working on a problem, number of insights, knowledge ultimately created
Minimize: lag time between data collection, analysis, and publication, cost of doing research
What do you think of Open Process/Open Product as a standard for research practice?
I’m really excited by the move toward open process & product in research practices. Unfortunately, much of the perceived value of research & publications comes not only from IP, but by keeping research processes secret, embargoing data until it is published, etc. So even as some practitioners are moving towards the above standards, I think we have a long way to go, and too many people – and institutions in particular – will be skeptical of the benefits.
For the research we do at Digital Democracy, we’re very dedicated to an open process that includes collaboration & resource-sharing, and could do even better at publishing raw data & in-process versions of analysis. On the product end, we use creative commons licensing on all our materials such as curriculum, photos and videos. I know the Reboot team (http://thereboot.org/) is also dedicated to open standards, and I believe has been working on practical ways for people to share raw qualitative data and in-process analysis. And of course the Meta-Activism Project provides a great model through the Global Digital Activism Data Set.
Mary, I’m curious where you look for inspiration/leadership for these evolving standards? It would be great to learn more from people and/or organizations pushing these standards forwards.
Thanks for the great post!
Pingback: Open Process/Open Product | Know Better