[Air-l] on journals ... | direction of internet research as a discipline

[Paul DiPerna]

I see a lot of parallels between political science and the development
of the internet research field.  Though my perspective is slanted since
my roots are in poli sci.

Political Science, organized formally within APSA, has been around since
the days of Woodrow Wilson (specifically 1903).  Yet while I was in grad
school, it struck me how much the field still struggles with
self-identity.   Students and even some professors would periodically
raise questions asking what makes Political Science different from
Sociology?

In terms of theory, some would say the former is a natural extension of
the latter... generating middle-range theories and defined largely by
the wealth and types of observable data and subject matter.  Ellis
mentioned this kind of disciplinary definition/parameter in her
previous message (below).

For those who like historical contexts, you might be interested in this
presidential keynote speech given in 1904, at the first APSA
conference:  http://www.apsanet.org/imgtest/190405AddrGOODNOW.pdf

APSA aside, I'm pretty sure the "political science" field (at least in
the U.S.) has been around for almost 150 years.. and there are still
some discipline identity issues.


On a separate tangent, it will be interesting to see the progression of
the Berners-Lee/ Web Science Research Initiative
(http://www.webscience.org/), and how it grows with respect to the
already established internet research field.


Do folks here see "Web Science" becoming a part of AoIR?

 do you see WSRI as bringing added value to a larger field of internet
research?

  or do you see this movement as reinventing the wheel?



 - Paul




> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject: Re: [Air-l] on journals ...

Ellis Godard wrote:

I'm curious how many others think/believe/expect this.

Disciplines can be defined by their subject matter, methods, or
perspectives (typically some combination), but AOIR is diverse in all
three of these
regards - and intentionally (perhaps even increasingly) so.

Even if those fascinated with "inter-/trans-"/boundary-crossing focus
their career attention within AOIR, and those of us with disciplinary
inclinations depart, to what extent can unbounded diversity provide a
foundation for a
home anything, much less a home discipline?