Robert Sandusky
Email Address: sandusky@uic.eduCollege: University Library Department: University Library
Title: Associate Professor
Office: 1-299 Richard J. Daley Library Phone: 312-413-9822
Webpage: http://www.uic.edu/~sandusky
Participating in the Chancellor’s Undergraduate Research Awards program: Yes
Research Interest:
Current areas of research include (1) management and re-use of scientific data and (2) distributed software development. My research is interdisciplinary and collaborative and is focused on sociotechnical systems, scholarly communications, and distributed work. My research is driven by these questions: 1. How do communities / disciplines use information and information and communications technologies to manage their work? 2. What kinds of information practices are used and emerge within communities / disciplines? 3. How do technologies, organizational / disciplinary culture, and processes influence each other as information practices emerge? 4. How are information, activity, technology, practice, and social order interrelated? The theoretical basis for my research draws from traditions in library and information science, sociology, science and technology studies, computer science, computer supported cooperative work, and studies of sociotechnical systems. This theoretical base informs my perspective on my research: information systems are not de-contextualized collections of hardware and software but are complex, situated, and dynamic sociotechnical systems. Using and developing information systems requires collaboration among people with multiple disciplinary and cultural backgrounds, and effective research designs must account for these interdependencies. Minimum time commitment in hours per week: 6-10 Qualifications of a Student:
Junior standing; majors could include social sciences, computer science, others (urban planning, business, etc.) with information technology emphasis. Brief Summary of what is expected from the student:
One or more of (1) data collection; (2) data analysis; (3) reviewing and interpreting research literature.
NOTE: This researcher is currently not accepting applications for the Undergraduate Research Experience program.
