[Air-L] Using ANT as ethos and method

[Liza Potts]

Hi Tamara,

I found ANT useful when looking at user interface design, social software
use, and disasters. I starting thinking about the concepts of technology and
human agency, and tried out a new way of diagramming experience to help our
designers re-think their interfaces. It worked well out in industry, and now
I'm at a university researching these ideas further.

ANT was a prominent player in my dissertation, which you can dig up:
"Building an Interdisciplinary Framework for Experience Design: The Use of
Social Software in the Aftermath of the London Bombings."

I've also published two papers that focus on actor networks, social
software, design, and disasters:
Potts, L. (2009). "Designing for Disaster: Social Software Use in Times of
Crisis." International Journal of Sociotechnology and Knowledge Development.
Potts, L. (2009). "Using Actor Network Theory to Trace and Improve
Multimodal Communication Design." Technical Communication Quarterly.

In this proceedings paper I look at diagramming and ANT:
Potts, L. (2008). "Designing with Actor Network Theory: A New Method for
Modeling Holistic Experience." Proceedings of the International Professional
Communication Conference. Montreal: IEEE.
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/freeabs_all.jsp?arnumber=4610231

Hopefully, that can aid to your cause, along with all of the other great
posts we've had on the topic. Feel free to contact me, as I'd love to
discuss this further.

Take care,
Liza
______________________________
Liza Potts, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Professional Writing
Old Dominion University
English Department BAL 5020
Norfolk, VA 23529
757.683.3997
AIM: LizaPotts  Skype: lkpotts


On Tue, Feb 10, 2009 at 10:14 AM, Tamara Paradis <tsparadis at gmail.com>wrote:

> Hi all
>
> I'm working on a graduate project that explores the controversies and
> understandings of MMO gaming as valid leisure. I'm curious what is it about
> MMO gaming that results in it being viewed as geeky, strange, "luser-ish",
> etc. I've been struck by the ways in which MMO gamers themselves, as well
> as
> everday non-gaming folks and mass media reportage (outside of financial
> reports!) seem to accept that MMO gaming is somehow a type of strange and
> suspect pursuit.
>
> I've long been intrigued with the work of Bruno Latour and others from SST
> and material culture studies who use an Actor-Network Theory (ANT) approach
> to studying the world and its phenomenon. I am drawn to the ethos of ANT
> which flattens the divide between researcher and the researched, and which
> advocates jettisoning old notions of society and "the social", and the old
> (artificial?) divides between micro/macro, structure/individual,
> power/domination etc. in the interests of letting the actions tell the
> story
> of the results. I'm equlally drawn but intimidated by the methods built
> into
> ANT -- the mapping of actors and connections and associations.
>
> I'm trying to convince a reluctant adviser that an ANT approach is a valid
> way of studying my research question. Given the digital focus and the
> desire
> to use ANT as ethos and method, as well as the ways in which ANT approaches
> study and fieldwork, I'm having a rough go of it.  I'm wondering if any of
> you are using ANT or have used it in the past for qualitiative research
> purposes (e.g. virtual ethnography; findings reporting; etc.). If you have
> done so in the past, are in the midst of doing so now or are at least
> intrigued by the possibilities, I'd be interested in talking with you
> off-list.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Tamara Paradis
> tparadis at connect.carleton.ca
> tsparadis at gmail.com
> Carleton University - Sociology & Anthropology
> Ottawa, ON, Canada
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