Michael S. Bernstein, Mark S. Ackerman, Ed H. Chi, Robert C. Miller

4:1

Ratio of “Understanding Users” papersto “Systems, Tools, Architectures and Infrastructure” papers submitted to the Interaction Beyond the Individual track at CHI 2011.

Trouble: Exponential GrowthYour usage data is not really compelling because only a small fraction of Facebook is using the application. Worse, your numbers aren’t growing in anything like an exponential fashion.

– CHI metareviewer, paraphrased

Suggestion: Exponential GrowthSeparate evaluation of spread from steady-state.

Which claim is the paper making?

Trouble: Snowball SamplingThe authors’ choice of study method – snowball sampling their system by advertising within their own social network – potentially leads to serious problems with validity.– CHI metareviewer, paraphrased

Suggestion: Snowball SamplingSnowballing is inevitable in social systems. It is fundamental to how they operate.

NoveltyBetween a Rock and a Hard Science

sociotechnical

sociotechnicalstudiersbuilders

sociotechnicalstudiersbuildersFatal Flaw Fallacy [Olsen]Ecological validity at the cost of internal validity

[Ackerman 2000], [Barkhuus and Rode 2007], [Chi 2009], [Greenberg and Buxton 2008], [Kaye and Sengers 2007], [Landay 2009], [Lieberman 2003], [Olsen 2007], [Zhai 2003]

sociotechnicalstudiersbuilders

Show us elegant complexity.(simple ideas that enable complex scenarios)

That’s it? What is possible now that wasn’t before?Nothing — but focus on emergent social activity.

Can you add multitouch?Not using IE8.

We let people type messages up to 140 characters.

socio technicalstudiers builders

Build a technically interesting system (that is hard to spread or evaluate), or

Simplify to a system with socially interesting outcomes (that builders find less novel).

Build a technically interesting system (that is hard to spread or evaluate), or

Simplify to a system with socially interesting outcomes (that builders find less novel).

The contribution needs to take one strong stance or another. Either it describes a novel system or a novel social interaction. If it’s a system, then I question the novelty. If it’s a social interaction, it needs more development.

– CHI metareviewer, paraphrased

Create a shared understandingof research contributions

social technicalNew forms of social interaction

Shared organizational memory [Ackerman 1994]Designs that impact social interactions

Increasing online contribution [Beenen et al. 2004]

Enable fluent social interaction in a new domainSocially translucent systems [Erickson and Kellogg 2000]

social technicalDesigns collecting or powered by social

dataWikidashboard [Suh et al. 2008]; sense.us [Heer et al. 2007]Algorithms to coordinate crowds or derive signal from social data

Collaborative Filtering [Resnick et al. 1994]; Iterate-and-Vote [Little et al. 2010]

Platforms and infrastructuresTurKit [Little et al. 2010]

social technicalPaired contributions can increase each

others’ value

×ManyEyes

[Viégas et al. 2007]

In conclusion introduction:What are our millennium challenges? What is our relationship with industry

and walled gardens?How can (and should) we evolve

our standards of proof?

Michael S. Bernstein, Mark S. Ackerman, Ed H. Chi, Robert C. Miller