Anne-Marie’s research focuses on the social implications of new and emerging technologies. She takes a problem-oriented view to focus on the interaction between technological development and social change, and has been involved in both the design of technology and studying its use. She adopts a participatory approach in which technology is designed and implemented not only for the users, but also with their involvement. In previous research, she conducted qualitative and quantitative studies on the implications of large-scale, complex systems (e.g. for public services provision, for e-voting, for automated border crossing). In this context she studied the needs, values, beliefs, attitudes and behaviours of various social groups and stakeholders involved in the use of these new technologies. Anne-Marie is also interested in exploring what the motivations and social trends are behind new ICT innovations and whether lay people can meaningfully engage in discussions about emerging technologies and the changes they bring to everyday life. Whose beliefs, values, and morality do these technologies mirror, and how can a balanced societal debate be created, leading to a social responsible use of ICTs? More recent work has focused on surveillance technologies such as child tracking technology and biometrics, and on digital inequality issues related to inadequate broadband access in rural Britain.
Anne-Marie’s work has been supported by a range of funders including the European Commission, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and Oxford’s Fell Fund. She held a Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship exploring e-democracy technologies and the problem of public trust (2007-2009). She has published academic articles, reports, conference papers, and magazine articles. An up-to-date list can be found here: http://www.social-informatics.net/publications.htm.
Currently, Anne-Marie is Principal Investigator on the FastPass project and the Access Denied project. The FastPass project establishes and demonstrates a harmonized, modular approach for Automated Border Control (ABC) gates. Border control is a major challenge for security and mobility within the EU. Travellers request a minimum delay and a speedy border crossing, while Border Guards must fulfil their obligation to secure the EUs borders against illegal immigration and other threats. The Access Denied project focuses on how people living and working in rural areas are affected by the unavailability of (adequate) Internet connections.
Anne-Marie studied Cultural Anthropology (MA) and Social Informatics (PhD) at the University of Amsterdam. Prior to joining the Oxford Internet Institute in 2007 Anne-Marie held research positions at the Social Informatics Department at the University of Amsterdam, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) in Amsterdam, and the Rathenau Institute in The Hague. Anne-Marie is also co-founder and board member of the Dutch ‘Wij vertrouwen stemcomputers niet‘ (We don’t trust e-voting computers) foundation.
Activism, democracy, digital divides, ethics, government, human-computer interaction, inequality, innovation, political participation, privacy, public policy, security, surveillance, trust.
Social informatics, privacy, online activism, trust, electronic voting, e-democracy, e-government, user participation.
Border control is a major challenge for security and mobility within the EU. FastPass will establish and demonstrate a harmonized, modular approach for Automated Border Control (ABC) gates.
EINS aims to strengthen scientific and technological excellence by developing an integrated and interdisciplinary scientific understanding of Internet networks and their co-evolution with society.
By using interviews and focus groups this project will focus on how people living and working in rural areas are affected by the unavailability of adequate Internet connections.
