AAU Student Projects - visit Aalborg University's student projects portal
A master's thesis from Aalborg University
Book cover


Hvordan videnskab bevæger sig: Interdisciplinær import i Humanistisk Datalogi

Translated title

How Science Moves: Interdisciplinary Import in Human-Centered Informatics

Author

Term

4. term

Publication year

2008

Pages

80

Abstract

Interdisciplinaritet er svært at definere klart i ord. Det skaber begrebsforvirring og usikkerhed om metode på tværs af fag. Samtidig gør problemorienterede, helhedsorienterede tilgange og nye teknologier det relevant at undersøge, hvordan interdisciplinaritet faktisk udfolder sig. Human-Centered Informatics (Humanistisk Datalogi) er et godt eksempel på et felt, hvor interdisciplinaritet er grundlæggende. Med afsæt i Charles S. Peirces semiotik tilbyder jeg en måde at forstå interdisciplinaritet i HCI. Jeg opdeler videnskabeligt arbejde i tre tilstande: Domæne (Peirces firstness), Analyse (secondness) og Teori (thirdness). Med udgangspunkt i Richmonds idé om trikonik (|>*) og vektoranalyse betragter jeg interdisciplinaritet som bevægelser i denne triade. I praksis importeres elementer fra andre fag ind i HCI i de tre "universer" Domæne, Analyse og Teori. Jeg argumenterer for, at disse overførsler sker gennem en form for lighed i et af de tre universer, og jeg giver en enkel definition af lighed i denne sammenhæng. Med denne metafor om elementer, der "bevæger sig" mellem fag, udvikler og præsenterer jeg en model for interdisciplinaritet bestående af seks triadiske operationer, som kan forekomme i interdisciplinært arbejde. Jeg illustrerer de seks operationer ved at analysere et bredt udvalg af litteratur fra HCI. Heraf udleder jeg indsigter om: (1) HCI’s egenart som felt, (2) princippet for overførsel af elementer fra andre videnskaber og dets praktiske konsekvenser, og (3) modellens anvendelighed i andre videnskabelige felter.

Interdisciplinarity is hard to define clearly in words. This creates confusion about concepts and methods across fields. At the same time, problem-oriented, holistic approaches and new technologies make it timely to examine how interdisciplinarity actually works. Human-Centered Informatics is a good example of a field where interdisciplinarity is fundamental. Drawing on Charles S. Peirce’s semiotics, I propose a way to understand interdisciplinarity in HCI. I divide scientific work into three modes: Domain (Peirce’s firstness), Analysis (secondness), and Theory (thirdness). Building on Richmond’s idea of the trichonic (|>*) and his vectorial analysis, I treat interdisciplinarity as movements within this triad. In practice, elements from other fields enter HCI in the three “universes” of Domain, Analysis, and Theory. I argue that these transfers occur through a form of likeness (similarity) in any of the three universes, and I provide a simple definition of likeness in this context. Using this metaphor of elements “moving” between fields, I develop and present a model of interdisciplinarity consisting of six triadic operations that can appear in interdisciplinary work. I illustrate the six operations by analyzing a broad selection of HCI literature. From this, I derive insights about: (1) the character of HCI as a field, (2) the principle of transferring elements from other sciences and its practical consequences, and (3) how the model may be applied in other scientific fields.

[This summary has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]