Summary Final Report: ESRC Scoping review on “Ways of

SummaryFinalReport:ESRCScopingreviewon“Waysofbeingindigitalage”

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SimeonYates

BridgetteWessels

LizRobson

PaulHepburn

StephenCrone

GerwynJones

AbdulsamadZhangana

MichaelPidd

AnnLight

ClaireTaylor

LeanneTownsend

VishanthWeerakkody

MonicaWhitty

RonRice

March2017


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1 IntroductionThisshortsummaryreportdetailsthefindingsfromtheEconomicandSocialResearchCouncil(ESRC)scopingreviewon‘WaysofBeinginaDigitalAge’.ThisisanabridgedsummaryofthefullreportdeliveredtotheESRCinMarch20171.TheaimoftheprojectistoinformapotentialfutureESRCtheme.Thereportandthereviewitisbasedon,seekstoprovideanholisticviewofhowdigitaltechnologymediatesourlivesthewaysinwhichtechnologicalandsocialchange,co-evolveandimpactoneachother.Thescopingreviewundertook:

• Asystematicreviewandsynthesisofliteratureusingdigitaltools• ADelphiassessmentofexpertopinion• Workshopswithacademicandnon-academicstakeholders

TheanalysisofdatafromthesethreeactivitieshasbeenusedtoidentifygapsinourknowledgebaseandwheretheESRCcanaddmostvalue.Afurtheraimofthescopingreviewistobuildandextendnetworksamongtheacademiccommunity,otherstakeholdersandpotentialfundingpartners.Theprojectinvolvedaninternationalinterdisciplinaryresearchteam.Thisreportcoversthefollowingmaterials:

• Initialresearch‘domains’(Section1)• Summaryofrecommendations(Section2)• Descriptionofmethods(Section3)• Keyresultsfromtheinitialresearchdomains(Sections4to10)• Cross-cuttingissues(Section11)• Additionalworkareas–automation,policyandculture(Section12and13)• Specifictopicsforrecommendedresearchareas(Section14)

1.1 DomainsexaminedTheprojectinitiallysplitthereviewintosevendomains.TheseweredefinedusingthescopingquestionsandmaterialssetoutintheESRCcalltotender.Thissplitwasanattempttoseparatethereviewtasksalongreasonabletopicanddisciplinarylines,acceptingthatanysegmentationwouldbeinpartartificial:

1. Citizenshipandpolitics2. Communitiesandidentities3. Communicationandrelationships4. Economyandsustainability5. Dataandrepresentation6. Governanceandsecurity7. Healthandwellbeing

2 RecommendationsWepresentheretheoverallrecommendationsfromthereview.Thekeysupportingevidencefortheseisprovidedinthefollowingsectionswiththecompletedetailinthefullreport.

2.1 AssumptionsInproposingtheseareas,wehavetriedtoconsiderthefollowingassumptions:

• ThisistobeanESRCprogramme.Theworkshouldthereforehaveastronglysocialsciencefocus,evenwhereitisinterandcross-disciplinary.

• Thetopicsshouldavoidareasthatarealreadywell researchedorhavebeensupportedbyrecentorcurrentresearchcouncilprogrammes. Wehavethereforesoughttoavoidareasservedbyprogrammessuchas:

1 https://waysofbeingdigital.com/reports/


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o EPSRCDigitalEconomyo AHRCConnectedCommunitiesandDigitalTransformationso AHRC/MRCmedicaldevicedesignandevaluation

• Thetitleoftheprogrammeis“waysofbeing”andwehavetakenthisasanindicationthatareasneedtolookmoreholisticallyatthesocial,economic,political,culturalandcommunityimpactsandrolesofdigitaltechnologies.

2.2 PriorityresearchareasFromourassessmentoftheDelphi,literatureandworkshopoutcomeswewouldrecommendthattheinitialseven‘domains’notedaboveneedtobereducedandreworked.WewouldproposetwomainsubstantivebroadresearchareasforfutureESRCwork,combining:

• CommunicationandRelationshipswithCommunitiesandIdentities• CitizenshipandPoliticswithGovernanceandSecurity

Wewouldthensuggestfourfurtherfocusedareasthatcouldstandaloneorcrosscutthetwomainareas:

• Economywithafocusontheimpactofmajordigitalplatforms• Dataanddigitalliteracies• Healthandwellbeingfocusedonworkplace,everydayandgovernanceissues• Digital divides and digital inequalities, including the two-way interaction between digital

inequitiesandotherareasofsocialinequityWehaveseparatelymaderecommendationsaboutworktobeundertakenonthesocialimapctsofautomation(seeSection12).Wewouldexpectanyprojecttoaddressoneormoreofthecross-cuttingchallengesidentifiedinSection13.Section14atthecloseofthethisreportprovidesmoredetailoneachoftheseareasandsuggestionsforspecificfociwithinthem.

2.3 Multiplatform/HolisticstudiesWewouldstronglyemphasisetheneedforprojectsthataddressmulti-platformorholisticstudiesofdigitaltechnologyuse.Thereviewoftheliteraturetodateindicatesthatmuchgoodworkhasalreadybeendoneexploringspecifictechnologiesandplatforms–Twitter,Facebook,Google,Uber,Mobiles,Smartphones,Blogs,specificgovernmentsystems,etc.TheDelphiresponseshavestronglyarguedfortheneedtolookatdigitaltechnologyuseintheround.WewouldarguethattheESRCprogrammeneeds:

• Todevelopamoreholisticpictureoftheintegrationofdigitalintocitizenslives(ornotinthecaseofdigitalinequalities).

Inotherwordstoaskbroadsocialsciencequestionsandthenexplorewhichtechnologiesarerelevantinthatcontexttocitizensactualpracticesandinwhatways.Thisdoesnotprecludesingletechnologystudieswherethishasrelevance,butsuchdecisionsshouldhaveastrongsocialsciencebasis–notsimplyonebasedontheutilityofavailabledata.Theoneareawherethismaybemoreacceptablewouldbethecaseoftheeconomicdomainasthestudyoftheimpactofaplatformonasectormightbelimitedtoonetechnology(e.g.Uber).Wewouldthereforeemphasisethatdigitalissuesshouldalsobeaddressedinotherprioritythemesasrelevant.Weareveryawareandourresultsclearlyindicate,thatdigitalissuesarealsoofrelevanceto:

• Mentalhealth–e.g.thebenefitsandhazardsoflivesspent“onscreen”,useoftechnologytohelpmaintainmentalhealth

• Housing–e.g.theroleofgovernmentdigitalbydefaultapproachestosocialservicedelivery,impactsofdigitalworkingonmobilityandurbanspace

• Productivity–e.g.automation,AIandthe‘gigeconomy’• Understandingthemacro-economy–e.g.majorplatformsforeconomicactivity(Amazon)or

theroleoftheCDIsector


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Wewouldalsostronglyarguethatfundedprojectsshouldaddressoneormoreofthesecrosscuttingissues:

• Methodsinnovationo Includingrisktakingondigitaltools–withastrongmethodsevaluationcomponent

• Theorytestingandevaluation,withtheorydevelopmentwereneededo Weareagnosticon theneed to inherentlydevelopnewtheory tounderstand the

everydayusesandimpactsofdigitaltechnologies.Theremaybeaneedforgreaterclarityon‘mostrelevant’theoryandonincrementaltheorydevelopmentasopposedtoaneedfor‘digitalspecific’theorydevelopment.

• Ethicso This needs to cover both ethics with regard to methods, but also wider ethical

concernsaroundsocial,commercialandgovernmentuseofdata,systemsautomationandhumanaugmentation.

2.4 Bigdata–alreadywellsupportedTheoneareawherewewouldarguethattheESRCshouldnotargueundertakesubstantiveadditionalinvestmentisin“bigdata”.Notonlycouldwenotfindconsensusonwhatis“big”in“bigdata”–nearlyalltheresearchcouncilshavesubstantialinvestmentsinbigdatainitiatives.TherearesubstantiveESRCinvestmentsinbigdataandmethods(e.g.ConsumerDataResearchCentre,variousPGRtrainingprogrammes)aswellassubstantiveSTFCinvestmentinthenecessarycomputingfacilities.Wewouldarguethattheprogrammeshouldbepositivelyopentoprojectsthathavea“bigdata”componentbutthefocusshouldbeontheuseofsuchmethodsforsocialscience-witharobustelementofreflectionandevaluationontheusefulness,limitations,toolsusedtoanalyseandrepresentativenessofthebigdatasetsexamined.

2.5 Fundingmodels–suggestionsfromconsultationworkshopTheconsultationworkshopinformallyreflectedonthepotentialfundingmodelsfortheprogramme.Thoughnostrongconsensuswasobtainedthefollowingelementsweresuggested:

• Strong support forEarlyCareerResearchers–opportunity for those “borndigital” to leaddigitalresearchprojects

• Needforseverallargeprojectsinthesubstantiveareasidentifiedbythereview• Needforsmallerprojects(maybeforECRS)toexplorespecificfacetsofthetopics• Needforaco-ordinatingnetworktolinktheprojectsandbuildonthenetworkscreatedby

thereviewTwooptionsthatwerenotstronglysupportedwere:

• Singlenationalcentre/project• Sandpits

3 Method3.1 DelphiprocessTheprojectundertooksevensetsofDelphiprocessinterviews.RoundoneoftheDelphiprocesswasundertakenwiththeprojectsteeringgroup.Theresultsfromthiswereusedtodevelopasnowballsampleofadditionaldomainexpertsforroundtwo.RoundthreeconsistedofaconfirmatorysurveyofinternationalscholarsandaconsultationworkshopwiththeUKsteeringgroupandasetofinvitedUKacademics.TheDelphiprocessidentifiedfoursetsofdataforeachdomain:

1. Scopingquestionsforfutureprogrammesofresearch2. Keytopicstobeaddressedwithintheseprogrammesofwork3. Keychallengeswhenundertakingtheseprogrammesofresearch4. Keyauthorsandkeyliteratureforeachdomain


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OneoftheimportantfeaturesoftheDelphiprocesswasthecommonalityofresponsestothe“challenges”questionsacrossallsevendomains.Wehavethereforereportedthesecross-cuttingchallengesasaseparatesection.

3.2 Systematicliteraturereviews3.2.1 ApproachGiventhevolumeofpublishedworkwithinthesedomains,undertakingameta-analysistosynthesisethequantitativeresultsofavailableempiricalstudieswasnotpossiblewithinthe10-monthtimeframe.Rather,theworkwasapartlyautomatedsystematicnarrativereviewwiththegoalofsynthesisingprimarystudiesanddescriptivelyexploringtheheterogeneityofwork.Theprojectweundertooklinguistic,contentandreflectivemethodstoassesstheliterature.First,theliteraturewasanalysedusingcorpuslinguisticanddigitalhumanitiestoolstoidentifypredominanttopicsandconceptswithineachdomain.Threeapproachesweretaken:

• Dataweresubjectedtoalengthyanddetailedconceptmodellingprocedures;developedbytheDigitalHumanitiesInstitutewithSchoolofEnglishattheUniversityofSheffield.Distinctfromtopicmodelling,conceptmodellingfocusesonneighbouringsectionsofdiscoursewithagoalofextractingconceptual structureand tracingpatternsandchange in languageandthought.

• Datawere analysed to identify key topics using comparable but differentmethodsby theDigitalHumanitiesandSocialScienceteamattheUniversityofLiverpool.

• DatawereexaminedforkeytopicsusingthecommercialWordStattool2.ThistoolproducedsimilarresultstothosefromtheUniversityofLiverpoolanalysis.

Theintentinusingthesetoolswastogainanoverallappreciationofkeyconceptsandtopicsinthisverylargeliteraturesetwithinashorttimeframe.Thus,allowingtheteamtocomparetheliteraturetopicswiththeproposedfuturetopicsidentifiedintheDelphiprocess.Interactivevisualisationsoftheliteraturedatacanbeexaminedat:

• https://waysofbeingdigital.com/literature-analysis-longitudinal-interactive-results/• https://waysofbeingdigital.com/literature-analysis-interactive-results/

Thesecondapproachtotheliteratureconsistedofacontentanalysisoftheroundonematerials.Thiswasundertakentoidentifythemaintheories,methodsandanalyticapproachesdeployedinthereportedresearch.Asathirdstep,theleadresearchersundertookareflectivereviewoftheliteratureandworkshopactivitiesrelevanttothedomainsthattheyhadfocusedon.

3.3 WorkshopsTheprojecthasrunarangeoffacilitatedworkshopstoengageacademicandstakeholderpartners:

• Monthly Salonevents in collaborationwithDigital Leaders (digileaders.com). Saloneventswere and are being led by academics based on the domains and the team has attendedindustryledSalonevents.

• A joint ESRC andDSTL funded facilitatedworkshop to explore research topics around thesocialimpactsofautomationandaugmentationintheworkplace.

• AjointMECSSAandESRCreviewsupportedworkshopon“digitalpolicy”.• AnESRCprojectandDCMSDigitalProjectworkshoptoexploretheimpactsofdigitalonthe

artsandculturalsector.• AfinalconsultationworkshoptoreviewtheoutcomesoftheDelphiprocess.• Afurther jointESRCandNSFworkshopon“WorkattheHumanTechnologyInterface”will

takeplaceinAutumn.• Anacademicsymposiumdiscussingtheresultsfromtheprojectandseekingfurtherinvited

reviewpaperswillberunbytheprojectjustpriortotheESRCandNSFworkshop.

2 https://provalisresearch.com


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Thefollowingsectionsdescribethekeyresultsfromeachoftheinitial7domains.

4 CitizenshipandpoliticsdomainThispartofthereportprovidesanoverviewoftheanalysesoftheDelphiprocess,literatureandanyrelevantworkshopsfortheCitizenshipandPoliticsdomain.Foracompletepresentationoftheanalyses,resultsanddiscussionpleaseseethefullreport.Asareminder,theinitialESRCscopingquestionsforthisareaofworkwere:

• Howdigital technology impacts onour autonomy, agency andprivacy – illustratedby theparadoxofemancipationandcontrol

• Whetherandhowourunderstandingofcitizenshipisevolvinginthedigitalage–forexamplewhethertechnologyhelpsorhindersusinparticipatingatindividualandcommunitylevels

4.1 KeyresearchtopicsandchallengesThekeyresearchtopicsandchallengesidentifiedbytheDelphiprocessarepresentedinTable1andrankedbyimportanceasreportedbytheconfirmatorysurvey.TheconceptsandtopicmappinganalysescloselyoverlaptheDelphiresults.ThetoprankedtopicsandconceptsarepresentedinTable2.TheclosemappingoftheDelphiandliteratureanalysesindicatesthatthisisawell-developeddomainofresearchwithclearfoci.Theconsensusaroundtheconsolidationofresearchquestionsintheconsultationworkshopreinforcedthis.Theremaybeanumberofgoodclearreasonsforthis.Politicalcommunicationandbehaviouraresubstantiveaspectsofbothcommunicationstudiesandpoliticalscience.Thesearebothareasthathavebeendramaticallyimpactedinverypublicwaysbydigitalmedia.Incontrasttotheveryrealbutlessvisibleimpactsofdigitaltechnologiesongovernanceorpublicpolicy.Therearealsoindicationsthatthevisibilityofdigitalmediafromthewebtosocialmedia,havemadeprocessesofpoliticalcommunicationveryvisibleandopentoanalysis.

4.2 Theory,methodandapproachThemajority(45%)ofthepapersundertookprimarydatacollectionwith23%beingdiscursivereviewsoforreflectiveonexistingresearch.Themaindisciplinesfromwhichtheorywasusedorforwhichtheorywasdevelopedwere:

• Politicsandpublicadministration(48.6%)• Sociology(28.0%)• Communicationandmedia(14.3%)• Psychology(5.1%)• Other(3.4%)• Geography(0.6%)

Therewasconsiderablevarietyinthespecifictheoriesappliedfromthesedisciplinesandnoclearpreference.Ideasofthepublicsphere(6%)andpoliticalparticipation(5%)werethemostcommoninthepoliticalscienceliterature.Themainresearchmethodswereliteraturereviews(33%),surveys(29%)contentanalysis(8%)andinterviews(7%).Themajorityoftheempiricalworkfocusedonspecificgroups(e.g.Facebookusers)witha

Topics VeryimportantGovernanceinadigitalage 51.9%Politicalmobilisationviadigitalmedia 48.1%Digitalandstatecontrol 48.1%Citizenshipinadigitalage 48.1%Data-big,smallandcitizen 44.4%Politicalparticipationandengagement 44.4%Privacyinadigitalage 40.7%Politicalmedia,oldandnew 29.6%Digitaldivides 22.2%Politicalidentityinadigitalage 22.2%Onlinedebateandinteraction 18.5%Challenges VeryimportantDevelopingnewtheory 55.6%Developingnewmethods 44.4%Dealingwith'bigdata' 44.4%Ethics 37.0%Epistemologicalandontologicalissues 37.0%Table1:Topicsandchallenges:Citizenship

Topics Concepts

Twitter citizenSocialNetworkAnalysis actionHomophili networkCyberhatecrime campaignPoliticalonlinefora citizenshipMobile channelGenderandethnicity accessElections engagementPartisanpolitics governmentCivicengagement participationWebandsocialmedia informationProtestandactivism linkMeasurement deliveryPublicsphere Governance Table2:Topicsandconcepts:Citizenship


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limitednumberofgeneralpopulationstudies.Themajority(53%)oftheanalyseswerequalitative.Onlyonestudyovertlystatedthattheywereusinga“bigdata”approach.

4.3 ConclusionOuranalysishasidentifiedfourkeyareasforfutureresearch,thesebeing:

• "Digitaltechnologies",radicalisation,mobilisationandpoliticalaction• "Digitaltechnologies"andthedisruptionofcurrentpoliticalinstitutions• "Digitaltechnologies”andnewformsofcitizenship• "Digitaltechnologies",politicalcommunication,debateandmedia

WewouldnotethattheGovernanceandSecuritydomainsignificantlyaddressestheissueof"Digitaltechnologiesandgovernance”whichisalsothetoprankedtopicintheconfirmatorysurvey.Theotherkeytopicsidentifiedfitwithinthefourscopingareasabove,exceptfor:

• DigitalandstatecontrolThisfitswithcommentsattheconsultationworkshopthattheissueofdigitalpoliticalcommunicationinnon-democraticregimeswasnotvisibleintheDelphiresults.

5 CommunicationandrelationshipsThispartofthereportprovidesanoverviewoftheanalysesoftheliterature,DelphiprocessandanyrelevantworkshopsfortheCommunicationandRelationshipsdomain.Foracompletepresentationoftheanalyses,resultsanddiscussionpleaseseethefullreport.Asareminder,theinitialESRCscopingquestionforthisareaofworkwas:

• How our relationships are being shaped and sustained in and between various domains,includingfamilyandwork

5.1 KeyresearchtopicsandchallengesThekeyresearchtopicsandchallengesidentifiedbytheDelphiprocessarepresentedinTable3andrankedbyimportanceasreportedbytheconfirmatorysurvey.ThekeytopicsandconceptsfromtheliteratureanalysisarepresentedinTable4.Asmightbeexpectedthefocusoftheliteratureispredominantlyonaspectsofrelationships,especiallyamongyoungerpeople(adolescents-sex-sexuality;childrenandfamilies).Asaresult,thereisalsoafocusontechnologiesandpracticesassociatedwithyoungerpeople(digitalentertainmentmediause;mobilephones;Facebook).Broadercomparativeworkacrossdigital(andnon-digitalmedia)wasalsoidentified.Socialnetworkanalysiswasanotablefeatureofmorerecentwork.

5.2 Theory,methodandapproachMostoftheanalysedpapers(64%)wereinductive,eitherdescribingfindingsorbuildingtheory.Only14%undertooktheory.Reflectingthis64%ofthepapersundertookprimarydatacollectionwith23%beingdiscursivereviewsoforreflectiveonexistingresearch.Themaindisciplinesfromwhichtheorywasusedorforwhichtheorywasdevelopedwere:

• Psychology(39.2%)• Sociology(32.3%)• Communicationsandmedia(15.6%)

Topics VeryimportantPrivacyandethics 57.1%Friendshipandrelationshipformation 57.1%Socialchange 42.9%Socialandcommunitysupport 35.7%Education 35.7%Exclusion 28.6%Agefactors-cohortandage 28.6%(Social)Media'Bubbles' 21.4%Workandorganisations 14.3%Politicalcommunication 14.3%Dataandrepresentation 14.3%Challenges VeryimportantEthicsandprivacy 64.3%Theory 53.8%Multidisciplinaryworking 46.2%Multi-platformstudies 42.9%Bigdata 35.7%Methods 28.6%Surveys 14.3%Co-design 0.0%Table3:Topicsandchallenges:Communication


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Therewasconsiderablevarietyinthespecifictheoriesappliedfromthesedisciplinesandnoclearpreference.Noonetheoryappearedmorethanthreetimes.Themainresearchmethodsweresurveys(36%),interviews(24%)andliteraturereviews(20%).Themajorityoftheempiricalworkfocusedonspecificgroups(e.g.Facebookusers)withalimitednumberofgeneralpopulationstudies.Lessthan2%ofstudiesovertlystatedthattheywereusinga“bigdata”approach.

5.3 ConclusionsTheworktodatehasemployedfairly-traditionalmethods.Itisorientatedtowardspsychologicalandsociologicalapproacheswithsomelinguisticandinformationstudiesaspects.Theworkdoesnotappeartohaveextensivelyemployeddigitaltoolsandbigdatamethods.Mostnotablytheworkappearstohavebeen“platformdriven”and“platformspecific”withabiastowardsyoungerpeople.ThefutureresearchidentifiedintheDelphiprocessisdifferent.Theproposedfocusshiftstowardsmoregeneralstudiesofcommunicationandrelationshipineverydaylifeandtheneedtounderstandtheintegrationofmultiplemediaintocommunicationsandrelationshipsbehaviour.Withthekeyquestions,topicsandchallengesbeing:

• The norms and values of digital communication andrelationships

• The ‘affordances’ different platforms provide fordigitalcommunicationandrelationships

• The quality of relationships and communicationsupportedbydigitalmediaandtechnologies

• ThemanagementofrelationshipsviadigitalmediaandtechnologiesWithintheseareasthetopfivetopicstoconsiderare:

• Socialandcommunityaspects• Privacyandethics• Exclusion• Socialchange• Workandorganisations

Withkeydomain-specificchallengesbeing:• Multi-platformstudies• Ethicsandprivacy

6 CommunitiesandidentitiesThispartofthereportprovidesanoverviewoftheanalysesoftheDelphiprocess,literatureandanyrelevantworkshopsfortheCommunitiesandIdentitiesdomain.Foracompletepresentationoftheanalyses,resultsanddiscussionpleaseseethefullreport.Asareminder,theinitialESRCscopingquestionsforthisareaofworkwere:

• Howwedefineandauthenticateourselvesinadigitalage• Whatnewformsofcommunitiesandworkemergeasaresultofdigital technologies– for

examplenewformsofcoordinationincludinglarge-scaleandremotecollaboration

6.1 KeyresearchtopicsandchallengesThekeyresearchtopicsandchallengesidentifiedbytheDelphiprocessarepresentedinTable5andrankedbyimportancefromtheconfirmatorysurvey.KeyconceptsintheliteratureareidentifiedinTable6.Muchoftheliteraturefocusesagainonyoungerpeople,especiallychildrenandtopicssuch

Topics ConceptsFacebook friendMeasurement mediaTwitter pairHighereducation groupCMCvsFTF adolescentStorytelling phoneNationandEU communicationGenderandlanguage relationshipSNA timeAdvertising mediumClass levelPrivacy teenHealthcare lifeBlogging parentMediaconsumption Adolescentsandsexuality Socialclub Childrenandfamilies Socialnetworkplatforms Oldmedia Mobilephone Table4:Topicsandconcepts:Communication


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asfriendshipnetworks,genderandtechnologyuse,aspectsofonlinecommunityformationandmaintenance,identityanddiasporacommunities.Morerecentlythereisagreaterfocusonspecificplatforms,especiallyFacebook.TheconsultationworkshopidentifiedspecificchallengesforresearchinthisDomain:

• History and culture areimportant to the developmentofonlinecommunity

• How identity gets lost outsidecitizens control – ethics ofplatformsuseofbigdata

• Understandingprivacyinonlinecommunities

WhatappearasnewconcernsintheDelphimaterialsarearangeofissuesassociatedwithinequalityinbothaccessandparticipationinonlinecommunities.Theproposedresearchareastypicallyprobewhetherdigitalprocessescanincludeorexcludecertainindividuals/groups/communities.Theyalsoexamineifdifferenceswithinandamongstthese,whetherphysical,social,politicalorcultural,haveanegativebearingonthedynamicsofinclusionandexclusion.Thereviewhighlightsthatquestionsaboutidentification,intersectionalityandtacklingofsystemsofdiscriminationordisadvantageareofprimaryimportanceinunderstandingcontemporaryprocessesof‘digitaloptout’and‘digitaloptin’.Thiscontrastswithmuchearlywork(1985-2000)oncomputer-mediatedcommunicationthatemphasisedthepotentialofaprogressivelydevelopeddigitalage.Therethereforeremainsaquestionsaboutwhatcurrentplatformsmightofferintermsofaddressingpersistentinequalityorwhethertheymayaddtoitsreinforcement.WewouldarguethattheDelphiprocessidentifiedtheekeyareasforfutureresearch:communitymembershipandprocesses;definingidentityonline;andunderstandingremoterelationships.Withintheseareas,thetopfivetopicstoconsiderare:

• DigitalCommunityExclusion/Inclusion• Digitalcommunityparticipation,actionand

socialchange• Powerinonlinecommunities• Understandingglobaldiasporaasdigital

communities• Understandingfunctionofaspectsofidentity

online(Gender/Race/Ethnicity/Sexuality)

6.2 Theory,methodandapproachMostoftheanalysedpapers(62%)wereinductive,eitherdescribingfindingsorbuildingtheory.38%undertooktheorytesting.Thepapersweresplitwith57%papersundertakingprimaryorsecondarydataworkwithagainstto43%discursivereviewsof,orreflectiveon,existingresearch.Themaindisciplinesfromwhichtheorywasusedorforwhichtheorywasdevelopedwere:Sociology(38.1%);Psychology(30.9%);andCommunicationsandmedia(19.6%).Therewasconsiderablevarietyinthespecifictheoriesappliedfromthesedisciplinesandtherewasnosubstantiveclearpreference.Themainspecifictheorieswere:

• Sociology(38.1%)o Socialnetworkanalysis(4%)o Technologyacceptancemodels(3%)

Topics VeryimportantDigitalCommunityExclusion/Inclusion 87.5%Digitalcommunityparticipation,actionandsocialchange 87.5%Powerinonlinecommunities 75%Understandingglobaldiasporaasdigitalcommunities 37.5%Understandingfunctionofaspectsofidentityonline(Gender/Race/Ethnicity/Sexuality)

37.5%

Challenges VeryimportantMethodstoaddresscomplexityofdigitalmediause 75%Ethicsofdealingwithdigitaldata 62.5%

Holisticunderstandingofonlineandofflinebehaviour 50.%Bigdata-developingandutilisinglargedatabasesandcorpora

12.5%

Comparativehistorical(diachronic)analysisofdigitalmediause

0%

Table5:Topicsandchallenges:Communities

Topic ConceptsOnlinecommunity groupIdentity(Psychology) computerFriendshipnetwork communityEducation genderComputing identityGovernance childChildren knowledgeFacebook networkMobilephone machineGender communicationMigrationanddiaspora leadershipIdentity(Assessment) college gameTable6:Literaturetopicsandconcepts:Communities


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• Psychology(30.9%)o Socialidentitytheory(7%)o Self-categorisationtheory(3%)

• Communicationsandmedia (19.6%)o Allthetheoriesidentified“Computer-mediatedcommunication”approaches

Themainresearchmethodsweresurveys(14%),interviews(14%),literaturereviews(14%)andexperiments(12%)Themajorityoftheempiricalworkfocusedonspecificgroups(e.g.StudentsorTwitterusers)withalimitednumberofgeneralpopulationstudies.Lessthan3%ofstudiesovertlystatedthattheywereusinga“bigdata”approach.

6.3 ConclusionsExistingworkhasemployedfairly-traditionalmethods.Itisorientatedtowardspsychologicalandsociologicalapproacheswithsomecommunicationstudiesresearch.Theworkdoesnotappeartohaveextensivelyemployeddigitaltoolsandbigdatamethods.Mostnotablytheworkappearstohavebeenless“platformdriven”and“platformspecific”buthasabiastowardsyoungerpeopleandchildren.ThefutureresearchareasidentifiedintheDelphiprocessaresubstantiallysimilar:

• Communitymembershipandprocesses• Definingidentityonline• Understandingremoterelationships

Thenotableshiftisinthetopicsandchallengeshavebeenidentified.Aswithotherdomainsthereisashiftawayfromtechnologyandplatformfocitobroadersocialsciencequestionsthoughthereremainsomeoverlappingareas.Asnotedintheconfirmatoryworkshopdiscussionthereisagreaterconcernwiththenegativeaspectsofonlineidentityandcommunity.AswiththeCommunicationandRelationshipsdomainthereisaconcerntolookatmulti-platformor“holistic”aspectsofdigitalmediause.Thesuggestedfuturetopicareasbeing:

• DigitalCommunityExclusion/Inclusion• Digitalcommunityparticipation,actionandsocialchange• Powerinonlinecommunities• Understandingglobaldiasporaasdigitalcommunities• Understandingfunctionofaspectsofidentityonline(Gender/Race/Ethnicity/Sexuality)

Withkeydomain-specificchallengesbeing:• Holisticunderstandingofonlineandofflinebehaviour

7 DataandrepresentationThispartofthereportprovidesanoverviewoftheanalysesoftheDelphiprocess,literatureandanyrelevantworkshopsfortheDataandRepresentationdomain.Foracompletepresentationoftheanalyses,resultsanddiscussionpleaseseethefullreport.Asareminder,theinitialESRCscopingquestionforthisareaofworkwas:

• HowwelivewithandtrustthealgorithmsanddataanalysisusedtoshapekeyfeaturesofourlivesInitialcomments

7.1 KeyresearchtopicsandchallengesThekeyresearchtopicsandchallengesidentifiedbytheDelphiprocessarepresentedinTable7andrankedbyimportancefromtheconfirmatorysurvey.ThechallengesinundertakingresearchinthisareaidentifiedbytheDelphipanelwereplacedinto8categories.Themajorityoftheseweremethodsissuesandsothiscategoryhasbeenfurtherbrokendownintospecificmethodschallenges.TherankingofthesebytheconfirmationsurveyarepresentedinTable7.ThereisamismatchintherankingswithEthicsandInequalitycomingtopoftheconfirmationsurveylist.Thesearethoughkeycrosscuttingissues.Thechallengesidentifiedpointtowardsspecificconcernsinworkingacrossthesocialsciences,informationstudiesandcomputersciencedisciplines.Especiallyasthetoolsand


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methodsbeingusedoftenoriginateincomputerscienceandinformationstudiesandmustbeintegratedortranslatedintosocialscience.Thiswastheonlyareawheretherewasexplicitcommentontheneedtoprovidehighereducationsupporttodevelopandtrainbothstudentsandresearchersinnewmethodsanddeeperdataliteracy.Exploringthattheunderlyingkeywords(Table8)ineachanalysiswewouldarguethatthetopicsintheliteraturearesplitbetween‘datamethods’,‘datasources’andthesocialissuesexamined:

• Datamethodso Scienceandmethodso Bigdatao Google

• Datasourceso Socialmediao Mobile

• Areasoffocuso Globalandurbancultureo Consumerserviceso Healtho Lawandhatespeecho Gendero Twitterandpoliticso Governanceo Cybercrime

• Othertopicso Ethicsandimpact

ThisisaverysimilartothebreakdownofresearchquestionsandchallengesfromtheDelphireview.

7.2 Theory,methodandapproachMosttheanalysedpapers(70%)wereinductive,eitherdescribingfindingsorbuildingtheory.Thepaperswerepredominantlyfocusedonreviewsofpriorworkandsecondarydata(overall73%)withonly27%undertakingprimarydatawork.Overalltheliteratureisthereforefarmorereflectiveandbasedoncommentaryontheissuesthanthatintheothersixdomains.Themaindisciplinesfromwhichtheorywasusedorforwhichtheorywasdevelopedwere:Sociology(62.5%);Psychology(17.5%);Communicationsandmedia(20%).Therewasconsiderablevarietyinthespecifictheoriesappliedfromthesedisciplinesthoughttherewasnosubstantiveclearpreferencethemainspecifictheorieswere:

• Sociology(62.5)%o Sociomateriality(10%)o Structuration(Giddens)(5%)o Criticaltheory(5%)

• Communicationsandmedia(20%)o Usesandgratifications(55)

Whereprimaryresearchwasundertakenthemainresearchmethodsweresurveys(14%),interviews(14%),literaturereviews(14%)andexperiments(12%).Themajorityoftheempiricalworkfocusedoncasestudieswithalimitednumberofgeneralpopulationstudies,reflectingthereviewand

Topics Veryimportant

Socialimpactsofdata 86.70%Privacyandsurveillance 60.00%Citizens/Everydaylifeexperiencesandusesofdata 53.30%UnderstandingOpendata/Algorithmtransparency/Accountability

53.30%

DataExclusion/Inclusion/Divides 40.00%Digitalidentityanddata 40.00%Datavisualization/Representation/Socialconstructionofdata

40.00%

Researchmethods 26.70%Economicimpacts 20.00%Challenges Very

importantEthics 66.7%DataInequality/Exclusion/Inclusion/Divides 53.3%Interdisciplinaryworking(ComputingandSocialScience) 53.3%Methods-Combiningoldandnewsocialresearchmethods

46.7%

Socialtheoryandsocialquestions 40.0%Methods-Concepts 40.0%HigherEducationandtraining 40.0%Accesstodata 20.0%Methods-Analyticsandmeasurement 20.0%Methods-Socialmeasures 20.0%Dataliteracy 20.0%Table7:Delphitopicsandchallenges:Data

Topic ConceptsSocialmedia datumScienceandmethods newsGlobalandurbanculture countryConsumerservices businessBigdata governmentEthicsandimpact mediumGoogle consumerHealth internetLawandhatespeech arrowMobile communityGender CitizenTwitterandpolitics PrivacyGovernance ImpactCybercrime Group Science developmentTable8:Literaturetopicsandconcepts:Data


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commentarynatureofthematerials.Lessthan2%ofstudiesovertlystatedthattheywereusinga“bigdata”approach.

7.3 ConclusionsContemporaryresearchintheDataandRepresentationdomainstudiedhereappearstohavefocusedon:

• Datamethodso Scienceandmethodso Bigdatao Google

• Datasourceso Socialmediao Mobile

• Topicareaso Globalandurbancultureo Consumerserviceso Healtho Lawandhatespeecho Gendero Twitterandpoliticso Governanceo Cybercrime

WhichcloselymatchestheareasidentifiedbytheDelphiprocess:

• Socialresearchquestions:o Citizenandcommunityuseofdatao Citizen interaction with data and

algorithmso Dataliteracyo Power and accountability for data

andalgorithmso Social construction of data and

algorithmso Social implications of data and

automation• Socialresearchtopicsandchallenges:

o Socialimpactsofdatao Privacyandsurveillanceo Citizens/Everyday life experiences

andusesofdatao Understanding Open

data/Algorithmtransparency/Accountability

o DataExclusion/Inclusion/Divideso Digitalidentityanddatao Data

visualization/Representation/Socialconstructionofdata

o Economicimpacts

• Methodschallenges:o Interdisciplinarityo Analyticsandmeasuremento Combining old and new

socialresearchmethodso Conceptso Socialmeasureso Understanding and

developing new researchmethods

Whatismissingfromthisdomainaresubstantiveempiricalstudiesofeithertheresearchquestions,oroftheimplementationofdigitalmethods.WewouldarguethatthisdomainthereforeneedstodevelopasetofrobuststudiesaddressingthekeyresearchquestionsidentifiedbytheDelphiprocess.

8 EconomyandsustainabilityThispartofthereportprovidesanoverviewoftheanalysesoftheDelphiprocess,literatureandanyrelevantworkshopsfortheEconomyandSustainabilitydomain.Foracompletepresentationofthe


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analyses,resultsanddiscussionpleaseseethefullreport.ItshouldbenotedthatthisdomaindidnotgarnerasextensiveaDelphiresponseattheother6.Asareminder,theinitialESRCscopingquestionsforthisareaofworkwere:

• Howdoweconstructthedigitaltobeopentoall,sustainableandsecure?• Whatimpactsmighttheautomationofthefutureworkforcebring?

8.1 KeyresearchtopicsandchallengesThekeyresearchtopicsandchallengesidentifiedbytheDelphiprocessarepresentedinTable9andrankedbyimportancefromtheconfirmatorysurvey.Theconsultationworkshopofferedupanumberofadditionaltopics,someofwhichoverlapwiththosefromtheDelphiprocessandtheliterature(seeTable10);theadditionaltopicsare:

• Impactsofdigitallabouronpeople’slifeexperience

• Impacts on firms of digitalplatforms

• Technology adoption inorganisations

• Role of digital monopoliesandlargecorporations

• Digitalimpactsonthestate:taxation, feedback tosociety

• Inequalityandjustice,socialdivides• Financing,investment,crowdfunding,lending• Implicationsofthedigitalforenergy/resourceuse(i.e.increasedpaperconsumption)• Enablingofsustainabilitythroughdigitalmeansthroughnewplatformsandapps• Regionalurban/ruraldevelopment

Theconsultationworkshopofferedupasetoffurtherchallengessomeofwhichoverlapwiththoseabove.Thedomainspecificonesbeing:

• Measuring overall impact of a digitaltechnologyonabusinessverydifficult.

• Similarlymeasuring scale/scopeofnewwaysofworkingandconsuming.

• Fluctuating/differentiation of prices makescertainqualificationschallenging(e.gCPI)

Giventhemorelimiteddatamakingbothbroadandin-depthconclusionisharderthanitisfortheotherdomains.Wewouldarguethatthedataherepointtotwoclearareasforfutureworkaround“waysofbeing”:

• Roleandimpactofmajorcorporatedigitalplatformso Impactsonfirmsofdigitalplatformso Roleofdigitalmonopoliesandlargecorporations

• Formsofdigitallabouro Impactsofdigitallabouronpeople’slifeexperienceo Gigeconomy(linkedtoplatforms)

8.2 Theory,methodandapproachMosttheanalysedpapers(59%)wereinductive,eitherdescribingfindingsorbuildingtheory.Theremainderweredeductiveundertakingtheorytestingorassessment.Only30%ofthepapers

Topics VeryimportantRoleandimpactofmajorcorporateplatforms 85.7%Formsofdigitallabour 71.4%Environmentandsustainability 71.4%Disruptivetechnology 57.1%Challenges VeryimportantSustainabilityanddigitaltechnologies 57.1%Understandingtheimpactanddevelopmentofalgorithms 42.9%Accesstodataonthedigitaleconomy 42.9%Ethics 28.6%Newmethodsandtoolstostudydigitaleconomy 14.3%Representativenessofbigdataondigitaleconomyandsociety 14.3%Table9:Delphitopicsandchallenges:Economy

Topic ConceptsProductandtechnologydevelopment informationSocialcapital knowledgeFacebookandinternetuse computerDemocracyandpublicsphere internetEconomicgrowth communicationIntellectualproperty workDigitaleducationandskills datumSupplychains mediumSmartenergy chainUrbanmigrationandmobile organizationMarxistanalysis Twitter Taxation Table10:Literaturetopicsandconcepts:Economy


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undertookprimarydatacollectionwith55%beingdiscursivereviewsof,orreflectiveon,existingresearch.Themajorityofpapers(76%)didnotutilisetheoryintheanalysisofdata.Themaindisciplinefromwhichtheorywassociology(72%ofalltheoryused).Therewasconsiderablevarietyinthespecifictheoriesappliedfromanydisciplinesandnoclearpreference.Noonetheoryappearedmorethanthreetimes.Themainresearchmethodwasliteraturereviews(36%).Themajorityoftheempiricalworkfocusedonspecificgroupswithalimitednumberofgeneralpopulationstudies.Nopaperswerebasedomtheuseofbigdata.

8.3 ConclusionsAsnotedabovethisdomainmayhavetheleastreliableDelphidataset.Thoughtheidentifiedliteraturedatasetisofasimilarscaletoalltheotherdomains(500+articles).Theliteratureappearstobepredominantlyreflectiveandreviewbasedasopposedtobeingbasedonempiricaldatacollection.Italsoappearstobestronglysociologicalasreflectedinthestrongpoliticaleconomyaspectsofthetopicanalysis.Selectingareasforfutureworkisthereforemoreproblematichere,especiallyastheissueoftheautomationofworkhasbeenaddressedseparately.Wewouldthereforeliketointroducesomethemesfromthestakeholderworkshops(DigitalLeaderSalons)runduringtheprojectandbefore.IntheseSMEandcorporateandgovernmentstakeholdershavepredominantlyraisedissueswithregardto:

• Productandtechnologydevelopment• Useofsocialmediaandinternetplatforms(Facebook,Twitter,Google)• Economicgrowth• Intellectualproperty• Digitaleducationandskills

ThiswouldthereforelooktoreinforcetherelevanceoftopicsidentifiedintheliteratureandtheDelphireview.TheremayofcoursebesomecircularityhereasstakeholdersintheDigitalsectorarenotedaskeepingtrackofacademicandmorerigorouspopularaccountsofdigitalinnovationandchallenges.ThoseattendingtheSalonsarelikelyself-selectingastheyhaveaninterestinkeepinguptodateonresearchandpolicydevelopments.OverallwewouldarguethatfurtherworkmayneedtobedonetoexplorethespecificallyEconomicdisciplinaryissuesthatdigitaltechnologiesengender.Withinthecontextofthisreviewwewouldargue,caveatsaroundtherepresentativenessofthedatanotwithstanding,thattheworkshops,Delphiresultsandstakeholderinputhavedefinedthefollowingkeyareasforfutureresearch:



Keychallengesthatcrosscuttheseare:• Newmethodsandtoolstostudydigitaleconomy• Accesstodataonthedigitaleconomy

Thisleavesthreeareasforseparateconsideration:• Automationandaugmentationofwork.Thishasbeenaddressedbyaseparatereport

providedalongsidethisreport.ThisworkwouldclearlycrossoverwiththeESRCProductivitythemeandtheMacro-economytheme.

• Specificeconomicissuessuchas:intellectualproperty;digitaleducationandskills;digitalsupplychains;financing,investment,crowdfunding,lending;regionalurban/ruraldevelopment.Furtherworkmaybeneededtoassesstheseissues.Again,thisworkwouldclearlycrossoverwiththeESRCProductivitytheme.


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• Broaderquestionsofenvironmentalsustainabilityanddigitaltechnologyuseandtheroleofdigitalinsupportingasustainableeconomy.ThisworkwouldmostlikelybetterfitundertheEPSRCDigitalEconomyprogramme.

9 GovernanceandsecurityThispartofthereportprovidesanoverviewoftheanalysesoftheliterature,DelphiprocessandanyrelevantworkshopsfortheGovernanceandSecuritydomain.Foracompletepresentationoftheanalyses,resultsanddiscussionpleaseseethefullreport.Asareminder,theinitialESRCscopingquestionsforthisareaofworkwere:

• Whatarethechallengesofethics,trustandconsentinthedigitalage• HowwedefineresponsibilityandaccountabilityinthedigitalageHowourrelationshipsare

beingshapedandsustainedinandbetweenvariousdomains,includingfamilyandwork

9.1 KeyresearchtopicsandchallengesThekeyresearchtopicsandchallengesidentifiedbytheDelphiprocessarepresentedinTable11andrankedbyimportancefromtheconfirmatorysurvey.TheconsultationworkshophighlightedasetofchallengesnotcoveredintheDelphireturns:

• Governance based onvalues, culture, beliefsandevidence

• Future proofinggovernanceforthedigitalage–toobigatask?

• Bigdata• Reconstituting labour

contacts• People centric NOT

technologydriven.• How do people benefit - governance that gets best trade-off between human need and

economicneed?Thereisamuchstrongercorrelationbetweentheconceptandtopicmappingforthisdomain.Wewouldarguethatthereappeartobefivemajortopicsinthisliterature:

• Stateuseofdigitalmedia–especiallywithregardtosurveillanceofsocialmovementsandprotest

• Internetregulationandgovernance–bothnationalandinternational• Children’suseofdigitalmedia–bothprotectionandregulation• Regulationandgovernanceofautomatedsystems• Deceptionindigitalmedia

Inreviewingthematerials,theteamnotedthatofthetheoriesthatwereexplored,eitherempiricallyordiscursively,itwasthosepertainingtotheinformationalornetworksocietythatprovedmostpopularfollowedbythosethatexamined:

• Privacy• Public/privatesphere• Politicaleconomy.

Surprisinglylittleattentionappearstohavebeenpaidtoexploringissuesoftrustbetweengovernmentandthegoverned,publicparticipationinthegovernmentdecision-makingprocessor,indeedusesoftechnologytoimprovethegovernanceofourcommunities.Wealsonotedthatthereislittleaccountofhowgovernment,ateithernationalorlocallevel,hasmanagedandrespondedtotheensuingsocialmediaandbigdatarevolution.Itisasurprising

VeryimportantPrivacy 83.3%Cybersecurity 66.7%Governanceofdigitaleconomy 33.3%Governmentdigitization 16.7%Challenges VeryimportantBigdataandanalytics-bothmethodsandusebygovernment 66.7%Detectingcyberattacks 50.0%Ethicsfordigitalresearch 16.7%Transnationalgovernanceofdigitaleconomy 16.7%Understandingdisruptivechange 16.7%Understandingdigitaldivides 0.0%Understandingcross-culturalengagementviadigitaltechnologies 0.0%Table11:Delphitopicsandchallenges:Governance


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omissiongiventherecentemphasisonthecentralityofgovernment,particularlylocalgovernment,toimplementingthesmartcityagenda.ThismaybeafeatureoftheselectedliteratureasmuchoftherecentworkonsmartcitiesanddigitalgovernmenthasbeenundertakenwithintheInformationandComputerSciencedisciplines.Thatispapersreportingonbuildingsystems,withsomesocialscienceinput.SuchworkmightfallmorecloselyintotheEPSRCDigitalEconomyprogrammeorsimilarapproaches.Theteamalsonotedthattherewaslimiteddiscussionofhowtechnologymightbeusedto‘fosteracivicwell-being’.ThiswouldfitwithargumentsmadeintheDigitalLeadersSalonswithstakeholderswherea‘publicvalue’orientationfortheadministrationofpublicservicesinplaceofthecurrentNewPublicManagementparadigmwasputforward.Itwasarguedthatapublicvaluegovernanceapproachtoservicedeliveryismorecongruentwiththeinformationandcommunicationaffordancesofdigitaltechnology,particularlythoseassociatedwiththeadventofthe‘socialweb’.Assuchitmaybemorelikelytousherinasmartgovernanceprocessthatcanleverinthelocaldemocraticandeconomicopportunitieslongassociatedwithdigitalmediabutwhichlocalgovernmenthashithertofailedtograsp.However,theseemergentideasdorestuponanumberofassumptions,notleastthatthereisafavourablelocalgovernanceenvironmentcapableofsustainingthisapproach,thathavereceivedlittleempiricalinvestigation.

9.2 ConclusionsAswiththeEconomyandSustainabilitydomainthelowerDelphiresponserateslimitsomeoftheconfidencewehaveintheresults.AlsoitisclearthattheDelphiresponsesthattheidentifiedliteraturepresentabroaderbriefthanthatintheinitialESRCscopingquestions.Therearetwoareasidentifiedbytheresearchthatareimportantbutwhichalreadyhavesubstantiveongoingsupport:

• Cybersecurity• Children’suseofdigitalmedia

Bothoftheseareclearlymatureresearchareaswithsubstantiveempiricalresearchbehindthem.Wewouldarguethatanysupportfortheseshouldtargetspecificissues,potentiallywheretheyintersectwithcross-cuttingthemes(seePart12).Forexample,inequalitiesanddividesinchildren’sdigitallives,ordigitalliteraciesandcybersecurity.Wewouldarguethatthefollowingpotentiallyoverlappingareasneedfurtherwork:

• Impactofsocialmediaongovernance• Successfactorsindigitalgovernanceatlocal,nationalandinternationallevel• Privacy,citizenship,thestateandsurveillanceinthedigitalage.• Regulationandgovernanceofautomatedsystems

Especiallyasthereappearsfromtheliteraturereviewtobelessempiricalworkintheseareas.Havingsaidthat,thesetopicsandthemajorityofquestionsandtopicsidentifiedintheDelphiandworkshopdiscussionscrossoverwiththeotherdomains.WewouldnotethatthattheyinparticularcutacrosstheCitizenshipandPoliticsandDataandRepresentationdomains.Wewouldthereforearguethatthesetopicsshouldbemergedwithotherdomainsasappropriate,retainingthefollowingtwospecificissues:

• Successfactorsindigitalgovernanceatlocal,nationalandinternationallevel• Personalprivacyinthedigitalage

Socialmovementsandprotestcommunication childInternetgovernance datumMeasurement privacyAutomation lawEUcommissionandprivacy internetUrbanmigrationmobile informationSocialmedia parentLawenforcement governanceMarxistanalysis protectionEducation innovationChildren’sinternetuse healthVoting governmentEmployment inspectorateDeception codeSurveillance Table12:Literaturetopicsandconcepts:Governance


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10 HealthandwellbeingThispartofthereportprovidesanoverviewoftheanalysesoftheDelphiprocess,literatureandanyrelevantworkshopsfortheHealthandWellbeingdomain.Asareminder,theinitialESRCscopingquestionforthisareaofworkwas:

• Whethertechnologymakesushealthier,bettereducatedandmoreproductive?

10.1 KeyresearchtopicsandchallengesThekeyresearchtopicsandchallengesidentifiedbytheDelphiprocessarepresentedinTable13andrankedbyimportancefromtheconfirmatorysurvey.Thereisagoodoverlapbetweenthetheseandtheliteratureanalyses(Table14).Wewouldarguethattheanalysespointtoliteraturethatisfocusedontheuseofdigitaltechnologiesandsocialmediainthreemainareas:

• Monitoring and supporting individualsin changinghealthbehaviours (such asweightlossorstoppingsmoking)

• Using digital technologies to monitorandsupportpatientswithchronicillness(e.g.hypotension)

• Using digital technologies to supporthealth communication or as part ofhealthsupportcommunities

Separatefromthistheliteratureisfocusedonthemeasurementandevaluationoftheefficacyofsuchinterventions.Thisevaluationfocusfitswiththecontentanalysisonmethodsandtheorybelow.Asectionoftheliteratureincludedworkoneducationaltechnologywithsomecrossovertotechnologiestosupporthealtheducation.

10.2 Theory,methodandapproachMosttheanalysedpapers(52%)weredeductive,applyingexistingtheory.Themajorityofpapersundertookprimarydatacollection(48%)24%ofthepapersundertookprimarydatacollectionwiththeremainderpredominantlyusingsecondarydata.Themaindisciplinesfromwhichtheorywasusedorforwhichtheorywasdevelopedwere:

• Sociology(19%)• Psychology(50%)• Healthstudies(8%)• Communicationandmedia(8%)• Informationstudies(5%)

Therewasconsiderablevarietyinthespecifictheoriesappliedfromthesedisciplines.TheoriesofBehaviourChange,SocialCognitionandPlannedBehaviour(8%eachoftotal)wherethemaintheoriesinPsychologyandsocialnetworkanalysis(2%oftotal)inSociology.Forthoseitemsthatundertookempiricalresearchthemainresearchmethodswerepredominantlyquantitative:experiments(19%),surveys(11%),socialnetworkanalysis(3%)andmeta-analysis(4%).Themajorityoftheempiricalworkfocusedonspecificgroupswithalargerproportionofgeneralpopulationstudiesthanintheotherdomains.Lessthan2%oftheworkdescribeditselfasusinga“bigdata”approach.

Topics VeryimportantBenefitsandharmfromdigitaltechnologyuse 76.9%Healthcommunication 46.2%Privacy 46.2%Device,environmentandservicedesign 38.5%Preventativeandlongtermconditionsupport 38.5%Digitaldivide 38.5%Digitalliteracy 30.8%Organizationalchange 7.7%Challenges VeryimportantMethodstoanalysedigitalhealth 61.5%Rapidchangeindigitalandhealthtechnology 38.5%Bigdataforhealth 38.5%Interdisciplinary 38.5%Collectingandaccessingdataondigitalhealth 30.8%Processesofco-design 30.8%Table13:Delphitopicsandchallenges:Health

Topic ConceptHealthcare diseaseActivity bodyMeasures careEducationaltechnology healthSocialmedia behaviourSocialsupportnetworkanalysis lossMobiledevices activityControlledtrial networkEthnicityandgender communicationProductquality childFamily interventionDiseaseoutbreaksurveillance Chronicdiseases Weightloss Efficacy Hypertension Stoppingsmoking Palliativecare Table14:Literaturetopicsandconcepts:Health


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10.3 ConclusionsItisclearthatthemajorityoftheliteratureisfocusedontheevaluationofdigitalhealthtechnologies.Thereappearstobealimitedliteratureonthebroaderquestionoftheimpactsofdigitallifestylesonhealthandwellbeing.Thereappearstobelimitedworkonthenegativeimpactsofthedigitaltechnologies.GiventheESRCfocusherewesuggestthatworkonthefollowingareasmayfalloutofscope:

• Device,environmentandservicedesign.• Preventativeandlongtermconditionsupport.• Designforpositivehealthimpactsofdigitaltechnologyuse.• Negativehealthimpactsofdigitaltechnologyuse.• Healthuserneeds.• Technicalchallengesof‘joiningup’healthprovidersandservicesthroughdigitaltechnologies.

ThesetopicsarelikelytooverlapwithMRC,AHRCandEPSRCconcernsoverthedesignandevaluationofhealthcaredevices.Suchworkwouldnecessarilyinvolvesocialscienceresearchbutmaylikelybemedicalormedicalengineeringled.ThebroadersocialquestionsidentifiedintheDelphiworkandconsultationworkshopsthatappeartogobeyondtheliteratureappeartobe:

• Understandingandaddressingthegovernanceofdigitalhealthtechnologies.• Needfordetailedsystematicevidenceoftheimpactandlivedexperienceofeverydayhealth

technologies(e.g.fitbits).• Questionsofhealthandwellbeinginthedigitalworkplace.• Digitaltechnologiesandhealthcommunicationandhealthbehaviourchange.• Broader socio-economicchallengesand issues in ‘joiningup’healthprovidersandservices

throughdigitaltechnologies.

11 AutomationThisshortsectionprovidesthekeyrecommendationsoftheESRCandDSTLAutomationofFutureRolesWorkshop.TheworkshopwascommissionedbytheESRCandDSTL,developedbytheESRCWaysofBeinginaDigitalAgescopingprojectandfacilitatedbyKnowInnovation.Theoriginalworkshopproposalandfinalreportcanbeseparatelyreviewed3.Theinvitedattendeeswereadeliberatelyinterdisciplinarymixofacademicsfromavarietyofdisciplinescoveringsocialsciences,psychology,businessstudies,humanitiesandcomputerscience.Theeventconsistedofasetoffacilitatedactivities,designedtoelicitideas,thoughtsopinions,andresearchquestionsfromtheattendingexperts.Thecoregoalsoftheworkshopactivitieswere:

• ToIdentifykeyresearchclustersandquestions• Toidentifypriorityareasforresearch.

11.1 OveralloutcomesTheworkshopidentified10researchclusters:

• Socialandculturalattitudestoautomation• Communityandsocialissues• Systemdesignforbeing(in)digital/augmented/automatedwork• Organisations,professionsandworkandautomation• Trustandaccountabilityofautomatedsystems• Whatishuman?–Whatistheroleofhumansinafutureautomatedsociety?• Technologicallimitationsofautomation



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• Researchmethods• Educationandtraininginthecontextofautomatedandaugmentedworkroles• Theory

Furtherdetailsofthesetenclustersarepresentedinthefullreport.Atalltimesarangeofcross-cuttingandoverlappingaspectstotheseresearchquestions/clusterswereidentifiedintheworkshop.Itwasrecognisedthatmanyoftheseclustersandquestionsareinterdependent,andanyoverarchingresearchprogrammewouldneedtoaddressthis.Sixrecommendedpriorityareaswereidentifiedbytwoteamsfromtheclusteringwork.Theseprioritieswere:

1 Trustinautomatedsystems2 Meaningfulliferoles3 Roles,systemdesignandeconomics4 Oversightandgovernance5 Socialimpacts6 Researchmethods

12 Cross-cuttingtopicsandchallengesAshasbeennotedthroughoutthediscussionabove,wehaveidentifiedanumberofquestions,topicsandchallengesthatcross-cutthesevendomains.Table15detailsthemostcommontopicsandTable16themostcommonchallengeswehaveidentified.Tocreatetheseliststhetopicsandchallengeswererecodedintoastandardformatforalldomains.Thosetopicsthatcrossmorethanthreedomainsareinbold.Thehighestrankedcross-cuttingchallengesarecommontoallthedomains.

12.1 Implications of cross-cutting topics andchallenges

Wewouldarguethatthecross-cuttingtopicscanbedealtwithintwoways.Etiherasdomainstobeaddressedinthemselvesoraskeyfeaturesorrequirementsforprojectswithinthesevendomains.Twotopicswhichwefeelwarrantseparateconsiderationare:

• Digital divides and digital inequalities – including the two-way interaction between digitalinequitiesandotherareasofsocialinequity

• DataanddigitalliteracyMethodsissuesareaddressedbelow.Theremainingcrosscuttingtopicsare:

• Governance,regulationandlegislation• Roleandimpactofmajorcorporateplatforms

Theremaybeanargumentforincludingtheseaskeyaspectsinrelationtoanyspecificproject.Withregardtocross-cuttingchallengeswewouldarguethatallprojectssupportedbytheprogrammeshouldseektoexamineoraddresseachofthefollowing:

• Methods innovation. This should include reflection on andevaluationof:digitaltools,analyticapproachesandthedigitalrepresentationofresults.Thiscouldandshouldincluderisktakingwiththeefficacyofnewtoolsandmethodsastheyaretriedoutandtested.

Topics PercentDigitaldivide 8.04%Privacy 6.75%Dataaccessandliteracy 6.11%Citizenship 4.50%Device,environmentandservicedesign 4.50%Participation 3.22%Methods 3.22%Governance 2.89%Education 2.57%Roleandimpactofmajorcorporateplatforms 2.57%Mobilisation 2.57%Talk 2.25%Cybersecurity 2.25%Table15:Crosscuttingtopics

RowLabels PercentMethods 38.02%Theory 11.98%Ethics 9.50%Bigdata 8.68%Co-design 4.96%Multiplatformstudies 3.31%Holisticunderstanding 2.89%Digitaldivide 2.48%Education 2.07%Dataaccess 2.07%Interdisciplinarity 2.07%Table16:Crosscuttingchallenges


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• Theorytestingandevaluation,withtheorydevelopmentwereneeded.Inallthedomains,wehavefoundagreatvarietyoftheory,butalsotheoryusedasageneralbackdropwithoutoperationalisationorevaluation.Forexample,manyofthesociologybaseditemsreference“NetworkSociety”theorywithoutoperationalisingthisinanyclearmanner.Incontrast,muchofthepsychologyworkdirectlyappliestheorybutthere isanextensivevariety.Wewouldcaution about the need to develop new theory for its own sake. As was noted in theconsultationworkshop–justbecausedigitaltechnologiesarenewtheymaynotneednewsocialsciencetounderstandtheirimpacts.Thismakestheorytesting,newandold,essential.

• Ethics. Ethics, especially around the use of publicly visible social media data remain achallenge for researchers, though clearer guidance is being provided by professionalorganisations (e.g. BPS, AOIR). There are also considerable ethical questions aroundwhatgovernment, businesses and organisations do with citizens data. We would argue thatprojectswillneedtohaveanelementorworkpackagethatassessestheethicalchallengesfacedtohelpbuildaknowledgebaseofbestpracticeandkeyconcerns.

• Bigdata.Alltheresearchcouncilsarecurrentlysupportinginitiativesthataddressbigdata(howeverthatisunderstoodintheirdisciplines).Wedonotsuggestfocusingspecificallyonthisissue.Separatefrommethodsinnovationwewouldarguethatprojectswhichseektouse“bigdata”should includearobustelementof reflectionandevaluationontheusefulness,limitations,toolsusedtoanalyseandrepresentativenessofthebigdatasetsexamined.

• Multi platform/Holistic studies.Theanalysesof the literature clearlypointout a trend inwhichresearchisundertakenrelativetonewtechnologiesandplatforms,orisfocusedononetechnologyorplatform.Suchworkisnecessarytounderstandthespecificsoftechnologiesorsocio-technicalcontexts.Thoughtheremaybeatrendtofollowaccessibledatasources.ButtheDelphiandworkshopresultshighlightacontemporaryneedto“reversethetelescope”and focus on the breadth and depth of citizens’ digital worlds, as they navigate amongmultiple technologies and platforms. This puts social science questions to the forewithinwhichamixofdigitaltechnologiesmayplayapart.


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13 MissingareasDuringtheprojectitbecameclearthattwosubstantiveareasweremissingfromthescopeoftheproject:

1. Impactandpolicyimplications2. Digitalculture

Theprojectthereforeundertooktwoadditionalworkshopsincollaborationwith:1. Media,CommunicationandCulturalStudiesAssociation:PolicyNetwork2. DepartmentofCultureMediaandSportDigitalCultureTeam(ofwhichthePIisamember)

13.1 PolicyThepolicyworkshopbroughttogetherscholarsformacrossthedisciplinescoveredbythisreviewaswellasfromOfcom,theICTsector,DCMSandDWP.Theworkshopidentifiedthefollowingareaswheredigitalfacingresearchmayinformpolicy:

1. Digitalpolicies a. DigitalInclusionandexclusion b. CDIsectorpolicy/regulation c. Digitalandsocialpolicy d. Artsandculturepolicy

2. Digitaltoolsinpolicymaking a. Toolsthatsupportpolicymaking b. Methodsofpolicymaking–riseof‘agile’policymaking

3. Digitalinpolicydelivery a. Digitalcommunication b. Bigdataandevaluation

Afullreportontheworkshopisseparatelyavailable4.Elementsofthediscussionsclearlyfallunderthegovernanceissuesidentifiedinthereview.Wewouldalsoarguethatfurtherworkmayneedtobeundertakenbyfundedprojectswithintheprogrammetoidentifyhowtheprojectsorroutestoimpactmightaddressthesethreeareas.

13.2 CulturethejointworkshopwithDCMSexaminedfourareas:

• Accessandparticipation-includingdigitalandculturalparticipation• Digitisationofculturalcontent• Cultureandtechnologyinnovation• Skills,IPandbusinessmodels

ThematerialsformtheworkshoparestillbeingassessedandwrittenupaspartoftheDCMSDigitalCulturereviewthatwillreportinSeptember.Wecandrawsomeconclusionsfromthediscussions.First,thesetopicsclearlyoverlapwithAHRCprioritiesbuttheremaybedangersinissuesfallingbetweenresearchcouncils.Second,culturalinclusion,likesocialinclusionisbecomingboundupwithaspectsofdigitalinclusion.Digitalandculturalcapitalarebecomingintertwined–iftheyarenotinfactthesamething?Third,digitalskillsforculture,especiallyaroundculturalproduction,maybearoutetodigital,educationalandeconomicinclusion.Digitalliteraciesmaythereforebebetterdevelopedthroughculturalengagementswithdigitaltechnologies.



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14 PotentialspecifictopicsbysuggestedresearchareaAswasnotedinSection2weproposethefollowing6researchareasforthewaysofbeingprogramme.ForeachwehaveidentifiedpotentialresearchtopicsfromtheDelphiandliteraturework.

14.1 Waysofbeinginadigitalage–Communication,communityandidentityWeproposethefollowingpotentialtopics(notinapriorityorder):

• Thenormsandvaluesofdigitalcommunicationandrelationships• The‘affordances’differentplatformsprovidefordigitalcommunicationandrelationships• Thequalityofrelationshipsandcommunicationsupportedbydigitalmediaandtechnologies• Themanagementofrelationshipsviadigitalmediaandtechnologies• Socialandcommunityaspectsofeverydaydigitaltechnologyuse• Digitalcommunityexclusion/inclusion• Digitalcommunityparticipation,actionandsocialchange• Powerinonlinecommunities• Understandingglobaldiasporaasdigitalcommunities• Understandingfunctionofaspectsofidentityonline(gender/race/ethnicity/sexuality)

14.2 Waysofbeinginadigitalage–CitizenspoliticsandgovernanceWeproposethefollowingpotentialtopics(notinapriorityorder):

• Digitaltechnologies,radicalisation,mobilisationandpoliticalaction• Digitaltechnologiesandthedisruptionofcurrentpoliticalinstitutions• Digitaltechnologiesandnewformsofcitizenship• Digitaltechnologies,politicalcommunication,debateandmedia• Digitaltechnologiesandstatecontrol–especiallyinnon-democraticregimes• Impactofsocialmediaongovernance• Successfactorsindigitalgovernanceatlocal,nationalandinternationallevel• Privacy,citizenship,thestateandsurveillanceinthedigitalage• Regulationandgovernanceofautomatedsystems

14.3 Waysofbeinginadigitalage–UnderstandingtheplatformeconomyWeproposethefollowingpotentialtopics(notinapriorityorder)::



14.4 Waysofbeinginadigitalage-Dataanddigitalliteraciesforengagedandincludedcitizens

Weproposethefollowingpotentialtopics(notinapriorityorder):• Citizenandcommunityuseofdata• Citizeninteractionwithdataandalgorithms• Dataliteracyineverydaylife• Powerandaccountabilityfordataandalgorithms• Socialconstructionofdataandalgorithms• Citizens/Everydaylifeexperiencesandusesofdata• Understandingopendata/algorithmtransparency/accountability


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• Digitalidentityanddata• Dataexclusion/inclusion/divides

14.5 Waysofbeinginadigitalage–EverydaydigitalhealthandwellbeingWeproposethefollowingpotentialtopics(notinapriorityorder):

• Understandingandaddressingthegovernanceofdigitalhealthtechnologies• Needfordetailedsystematicevidenceoftheimpactandlivedexperienceofeverydayhealth

technologies(e.g.fitbits)• Questionsofhealthandwellbeinginthedigitalworkplace• Digitaltechnologiesandhealthcommunicationandhealthbehaviourchange

14.6 Waysofbeinginadigitalage–DigitalinequalitiesWeproposethefollowingpotentialtopics(notinapriorityorder):

• DigitalCommunityExclusion/Inclusion• Thetwo-wayinteractionbetweendigitalinequitiesandotherareasofsocialinequity• DataExclusion/Inclusion/Divides• Digitalculturalcapitalandculturalexclusion/inclusion• Digitalgovernance,policyandinclusion• Digitalhealthinequalities

Documents

Summary Final Report: ESRC Scoping review on “Ways of