Tim Davies | University of Southampton (original) (raw)

Papers by Tim Davies

Abstract Movements towards open data involve the publication of datasets (from metadata on public... more Abstract Movements towards open data involve the publication of datasets (from metadata on publications, to research, to operational project statistics) online in standard formats and without restrictions on reuse. A number of open datasets are published as linked data, creating a web of connected datasets.

Interest in 'opening up'public sector information(PSI) on the Internet has been growing in recent... more Interest in 'opening up'public sector information(PSI) on the Internet has been growing in recent years(Aichholzer & Burkert, 2004), gaining a significant boost in Europe with the 2003 PSI Directive (European Commission), and gathering pace in the last twelve months, particularly in the United States and United Kingdom with high-‐profile central government open data initiatives (eg the launch of Data. gov. uk and Data. gov).

The Social Life of Data Pilot will develop and apply a draft methodology for a dataset centric st... more The Social Life of Data Pilot will develop and apply a draft methodology for a dataset centric study of open data in the context of a pilot project looking at the re-use of data published through the International Aid Transparency Initiative. The research is framed by two sets of questions reflecting the methodological and applied research concerns:

Open data involves a paradigm shift in the way organisations manage their information and data: m... more Open data involves a paradigm shift in the way organisations manage their information and data: moving from a default of charities keeping data resources locked up in underused internal systems, to building a shared 'Web of Data'. The emergence of the open data movement has supported powerful new models of creativity, innovation and public engagement.

Who would reject the idea of a democratic and responsive government? Digital era technologies hav... more Who would reject the idea of a democratic and responsive government? Digital era technologies have promised both to make government more responsive to citizen needs, and to revitalise flagging democratic structures.

ABSTRACT Strong claims have been made for the potential benefits to be derived from government op... more ABSTRACT Strong claims have been made for the potential benefits to be derived from government open data initiatives: from open data fuelled economic growth, to stronger democratic accountability and improved delivery of public services (33; 16; 11; 22; 15; 21). Activists have called on governments to free our data (1) and provide raw data now (3).

Abstract This paper starts by exploring some of the critical questions that we need to ask of Web... more Abstract This paper starts by exploring some of the critical questions that we need to ask of Web 3.0 technologies, based on brief reflections on the last 25 years of ICT adoption in the development sector. It then outlines some of the different aspects of the current 'data revolution', before turning to look in depth at the potential impacts of 'open data'and 'linked data'on development.

This editorial essay presents an overview of the contributions in the Special Issue. It also rais... more This editorial essay presents an overview of the contributions in the Special Issue. It also raises critical questions for further research and thinking about Open Government Data.

Strong claims are made about the potential of opening government data to drive service innovation... more Strong claims are made about the potential of opening government data to drive service innovation. Yet little is known about the detailed processes of how hackers create or reshape services out of new releases of public datasets, and the conditions for the move from data release to service innovation. We argue the utility of open data is accrued through the creation of new artifacts with enhanced performativity transformed by human and material agency. In a multimethod study of the open data hackers in the UK we identified a series of interlocking processes involved in the conversion of public data into services of public value. We found that few of the ‘rapid prototypes’ developed through hack day events are maintained or sustained as service innovations beyond those events. Five artifacts provided the value stack of complementarities: cleaned data available through APIs or bulk downloads, linkable data, shared source code and configuration, source code repositories, and web technologies. Our findings also suggest that only a few open datasets induce the process of change, and that initial contributions are driven by the use values but can only be sustained through an open innovative approach to induce further collaboration within a wider open data community.

This brief discussion paper shares preliminary work to develop a practical framework for thinking... more This brief discussion paper shares preliminary work to develop a practical framework for thinking about rights-respecting advocacy, policy and practice responses to support and empower children and young people in their daily encounters with the Internet and other networked digital technologies. Contemporary public service policy and practice responses to the role of the Internet in young people’s lives focus disproportionately on strategies involving web blocking and filtering, restriction of access to online spaces, and safety messaging highlighting what young people should not do online. We argue that such strategies can be both counterproductive, and lead to a neglect of the role of public services in promoting young people’s digital literacy and skills.

Whilst the EU Kids Online program has highlighted that “safety initiatives to reduce risk tend also reduce opportunities” (De Haan & Livingstone, 2009), alternative strategies are needed that help professionals working with young people to move beyond a conceptual model in which the ‘risks’ and ‘opportunities’ of digital technologies are set up in opposition. In exploring how to respond to the online lives of children and young people, safety must sit alongside, and be integrated with, a broader range of considerations, including promoting positive uptake of online opportunities, promoting skills relevant to a digital economy, and encouraging the development of accessible, democratic online spaces in which rights to both play and participation, amongst others, can be realized.

We suggest that the common classification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into Provision, Protection and Participation rights (Cantwell, 1993) can provide the basis for such strategies, in which the protection of children and young people, the provision of appropriate services, spaces and support, and the participation of children and young people in shaping opportunities and managing their own safety, are all seen as integral parts of any work relating to children and young people’s online lives. We put forward a range of practical principles that can guide the design of responses to young people’s online lives, including: supporting digital citizenship; empowering young people; having robust responses to risk; promoting resiliency; providing positive spaces; and allowing young people to shape services.

Governments are increasingly making their data available online in standard formats and under lic... more Governments are increasingly making their data available online in standard formats and under licenses that permit the free re-use of data. The justifications advanced for this include claims regarding the economic potential of open government data (OGD), the potential for OGD to promote transparency and accountability of government and the role of OGD in supporting the reform and reshaping of public services. This paper takes a pragmatic mixed-methods approach to exploring uses of data from the UK national open government data portal, data.gov.uk, and identifies how the emerging practices of OGD use are developing. It sets out five ‘processes’ of data use, and describes a series of embedded cases of education OGD use, and use of public-spending OGD. Drawing upon quantitative and qualitative data it presents an outline account of the motivations driving different individuals to engage with open government data, and it identifies a range of connections between open government data use of processes of civic change. It argues that a “data for developers” narrative that assumes OGD use will primarily be mediated by technology developers is misplaced, and that whilst innovation-based routes to OGD-driven public sector reform are evident, the relationship between OGD and democracy is less clear. As strategic research it highlights a number of emerging policy issues for developing OGD provision and use, and makes a contribution towards theoretical understandings of OGD use in practice.