Hybrid Worlds: conducting research in the fringes of

on-line and off-line environments

Prodromos TsiavosC3 project, IFI, UIOtsiavosp@ifi.uio.no 06.10.05

Backbone

Pivotal Readings and Persons Who am I A narrative of my research Reconstruction Theory Data Fields Discussion Conclusions (?) Where Next

Pivotal Readings/ Persons

Ciborra (2001): Existential Research Scott (2000): Lived Methodology Callon (1986): social researcher as an

equal to the researched subject Hine (2000): virtual ethnography Lessig (1995, 2003): virtual and real worlds Latour (1988): follow the actor Schultze (2000): Confessional writing

Influenced by Behar (1996) Vulnerable Writing and Van Maanen (1988)

Who am I?

Solicitor IS analysis and development LSE PhD student Creative Commons Legal Project

Lead

A narrative of my research trajectory

Interaction between technology and law Napster case (1999) The Gnutella Protocol (peer-to-peer) as a

dissemination mechanisms The Gnutella Protocol as a development process

based on the General Public Licence (GPL) Working for the EU in the DG INFSO in the

department of distributed systems. Focus on Free/ Open Source Software policies

Ecologies of Regulation The Creative Commons Project Creative Commons Project in the UK (development of

licences for England and Wales)

Reconstruction

Research Theme Interaction between technology and law Evolution of regulatory ecologies

Unit of Analysis Regulatory ecology:

• A Protocol• A licensing scheme

Type of Research Trying to make sense and challenge the status quo; Critical Research [Howcroft and

Trauth (2004)] Follow the Actor; Actor Network Theory [Latour (1988)]

Theory Lessig (1989-2005)

Data Collection Mailing list (Gnutella) Mailing list, Individual Emails, Episodes (Creative Commons)

Data Analysis Employment of Grounded Theory Tools for analysis of both theory and data Use of AtlasTi Actor Network Theory [Walsham (1995)] for argument analysis

Presentation of material Confessional writing [Schultze (2000)]

Theory

Transcending boundaries [Callon (1986)] 48 papers and 3+1 books by Lawrence Lessig in a period of 16 years Objective:

to deconstruct his work and reconstruct it in the form of a coherent theory to come up with a series of concepts supporting the exploration of regulatory ecologies to then supplement the theory with the empirical findings in two different cases

Method (iterative and incremental) First reading of material Keyword identification Second Reading of the Material Collection of texts and conversion to ASCII format Employment of qualitative analysis (grounded theory) [Strauss (1967), Strauss and Corbin (1997)] software

tools (AtlasTi) Third Reading of the Material focusing on the first six years and three key texts (choice by reference) Start writing abstracts, “notional narratives” of each text until repetition starts occuring [influences by axial

coding] Fourth Reading Construction of a theoretical/ narrative backbone in the form of an argument tree (focus on modularization) Fifth Reading Complementing the theoretical backbone

Lessig as an Internet Persona www.lessig.org Blog space Other resources

Data Field I[The Gnutella Protocol (Part I)] Project profile:

Open Protocol [GPL based] Duration: operative since March 2000 Focus on the interactions between the various developers in the Gnutella Developers’

Forum (GDF) Modes of exploration of the phenomenon:

Prehistory: • through information on the web, following references in the form of hyperlinks and searches

Main Gnutella development:• The GDF, an open forum hosted at the Yahoo!Groups

Unit of Analysis:• The Gnutella2 incident and its evolution in conjunction with the original Gnutella development

Research Question:• How is openness constructed through the interactions between the developers and how does it relate

with the GPL and other regulatory forms/ structures Data Inputs:

• Messages between the developers (over 22,000 messages)• The structure of the GDF• Normative documents (such as the “charter” of the GDF)• The GPL

Data Field I[The Gnutella Protocol (Part II)]

Modes of exploration of the phenomenon: Collection:

• Search with Keywords such as Gnutella2, GPL and then follow the threads• Conversion to ASCII files• Use of AtlasTi

Data Analysis:• Construction of a copy-paste narrative of all relevant discussions• First Reading• Identification of key concepts• Construction of main argument trajectory• Second Reading• Identification of higher level concepts• Construction of specific argument trajectories• Third Reading

Theory links• Comparison with concepts of openness derived from Theory

Type of research intervention• Stealth (“lurking”)

Data Field II[CC in the UK (Part I)] Project profile:

Rolling out of Open Content Licences Duration: operative since December 2002, March 2003 (in the UK), March 2004 (my involvement) Focus on

• the interactions between the various contributors of the licence• The Creative Commons in the UK licences• The development process outside the list• A series of conferences and events around the licences• The institutional environment where the licences are created• Areas of policy that are to be changed as a result of the CC licences

Modes of exploration of the phenomenon: Prehistory:

• through information on the web, following references in the form of hyperlinks and searches• Through discussions (unstructured interviews with the contributors of the project

The CC in the UK development in particualr• Personal reflections• The CC in the UK mailing list wiki• The International Creative Commons mailing list wiki• The Creative Commons and Collecting societies mailing list and wiki

Unit of Analysis:• The CC in the UK licences as a rolling snowball revealing the construction of an alternative to the mainstream regulatory

ecology Research Question:

• How is openness and participation constructed through the various activities around the development and evolution of the CC in the UK licences

Data Inputs:• Messages between the CC in the UK Licences developers • Wiki Pages content• Mailing lists and Wiki structures• Normative documents (such as the rules of the mailing lists and the CC principles)• The types of material upon which the CC in the licences are applied• The content of the CC licences (also known as “Licence Elements”)

Data Field II[CC in the UK (Part II)] Modes of exploration of the phenomenon:

Collection/ pre-analysis:• Indexing all the relevant material

• Per mailing list• Communication with particular individuals [members of the CC-UK/iCC/CC in “anglophiile” jurisdictions/ other]• Personal log• Relevant publications

• Identification of the material that are related to the issue of participation/ classification on the basis of keywords and content experience [reality: guts]

Data Analysis:• Construction of a copy-paste narrative of all relevant discussions• First round of Readings• Identification of key narratives• Construction of a narrative tree• Construction of a version history as a result of interactions [had to do it anyhow as part of my work in CC in the

UK]• Reflection on my role and my research objectives [Oates (2004]• Second round of Readings• Identification of feedback breakdowns• Reflection on my role and my research objectives [Oates (2004]• Construction of specific argument trajectories• Third Reading• Identification of openness norms and mechanisms

Theory links• Comparison with concepts of openness derived from Lessig’s Theory. • Focus on Lessig’s role in the project

Type of research intervention• Active (posting) but with discretion

Discussion

Linking it with theory Comparison between the two case studies and the theoretical

framework Detached vs. engaged research Intersection between the real and the virtual Limitations in the way research is conducted:

• comparing cases of a different level• the self reflection element etc

Contributions to theory Ecologies of regulation and related concepts Use of ANT for regulation study Linking Lessig’s work with ANT Use of AtlasTi for the literature review

Contributions to practice Regulation in a non-legal context (Gnutella) Bottom-up large scale IPR change (CC in the UK)

Where Next

The choice of data “defines” the boundaries of the phenomenon and “pre-empties” the research framework:

Gnutella case: • creation of a solely on-line regulatory creature• global and space dispersed group of developers

Creative Commons in the UK• Link with a particular locus• Need for off-line data• Global effect• Meetings with the licence developers

Further methodological concerns: An ANT for the ANT Further deconstruction of the Lessig/ CC network Hybrid research in the Gnutella protocol Open Business Models project

Alternatives: In the presentation mode:

• Manu Luksch http://www.ambienttv.net/index_frame.html • Carey Young http://www.careyyoung.com/past/winwin.html

In the feedback: “Open Source” your research [community based] You tell me!!!

References Bauer M. and Gaskell G. (2000) Qualitative researching with text, image and sound, London, SAGE

Bryant T. et al (2004) Twenty Years of Applying Grounded Theory in Information Systems: a Coding Method,

Useful Theory Generation Method, or an Orthodox Positivist Method of Data Analysis, IFIP 8.2. Manchester 2004 http://is.lse.ac.uk/support/ifip_wg82/Manchester/BryantPanel.pdf

Callon, M. (1986). Some Elements of a Sociology of Translation: Domestication of the Scallops and the

Fishermen of Saint Brieuc Bay. In J. Law (Ed.) Power, Action and Belief: a new Sociology of Knowledge? Sociological Review Monograph. London, Routledge and Kegan Paul. 32: 196-233

Ciborra C. (2001) n the Mood for Knowledge: a New Study of Improvisation, LSE Working Papers http://is.lse.ac.uk/wp/pdf/WP94.PDF

Hine C. (2000) Virtual Ethnography, London, SAGE

Lessig L. (1995) The Path of Cyberlaw 104 Yale Law Journal. 1743

Lessig L. (2003) Law Regulating Code Regulating Law Loyola University of Chicago Law Journal

Strauss A. and Corbin J. (1997) Grounded Theory in practice, London, SAGE

Mann C., Stewart F. (2000) Internet Communication and Qualitative Research: A Handbook for Researching Online, London, Sage

Oates B. (2004) Action Research: Time to Take a Turn, IFIP 8.2. Manchester 2004 http://is.lse.ac.uk/support/ifip_wg82/Manchester/Oates.pdf

Schultze U. (2000) A Confessional Account of an Ethnography About Knowledge Work, MISQ 24 1, pp.3-21

Scott S. (2000) "Lived methodology": A situated discussion of "Truth and Method" in Interpretive Information Systems Research, LSE Working Papers http://is.lse.ac.uk/wp/pdf/WP91.PDF