ABSTRACT
In the popular use of social web tools such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Flickr, and Wikipedia, we have witnessed a sea change between “use” and “participation.” While the former is associated with years of user-centered design theories and methods, the latter is bringing forth new ideas, theories, and techniques on how best to research, build, and support sociotechnical systems. Unlike prior experiences in which users marched through a set of interfaces and stayed contained within systems, social web participants consider an entire ecosystem of solutions for communicating with others across multiple networks. As researchers and practitioners, we must reconsider our preconceived notions of “social” and explore these spaces as participants. Through these activities, we can begin to understand how to build more flexible systems, methods, and policies.
