ABOUT

Department for Social Informatics and methodology (CSIM) at Faculty of Social Sciences (University of Ljubljana) deals with interaction of modern society and information communication technology (ICT). 

It focuses on all aspects of ICT (information-communication technologies) in the society as a leverage of social change, as tools for research (e.g. survey methodology) and as a generator of new service modes in social sub-systems. CSI specializes in the field of analyses of specific sociological topics related to ICT, Internet, mobile phones, youth and literacy etc. According to Vehovar (2006) the ICT interacts with society in three directions:

1. ICT as factor of social changes; the social consequences of ICT at micro (e.g. social aspects of ICT applications at personal and organizational level as well as at macro level (e.g. information society studies);
2. ICT as tool for the study of social sciences;
3. ICT as generator of new services in the social subsystems; e.g. the use of ICT as a tool for studying social phenomena (within social science methodology).

CSIM is addressing all three streams and is also closely linked to the  study program of Social Informatics, which has been run already from 1984.

The CSIM researchers conduct numerous project related to broader area of social informatics. Besides national, EU and other international research projects, the following are key activities, which run continuously:

• CSIM runs leading global tool for analyzing large social networks, Pajek,
• CSIM runs (since 1998) the global website about resources on web survey methodology, WebSM.org,
• CSIM also runs national Safer Internet node (Safe.si) and national Hotline node for anonymous reports of illegal content Spletno Oko,
• CSIM runs RIS (Research on Internet in Slovenia) which is the main point (since 1955) for Internet related research in Slovenia. The project has produced more than 100 research reports from various areas of information society, digital divide, eLearning, eGovernment, eBusiness, ePrivacy, eManagement, up to online social networks,
• CSIM has developed its own open source Content Management (CMS Sisplet),
• CSIM is developng a tool for online data collection, 1KA - OneClickSurvey.
• Several national projects have dealt also with knowledge management systems in relation to ICTs (development of a conceptual model and computer prototype for knowledge management ; measuring research and development potential in ICT companies, faculties and research organisations ; socio-technological influences of Internet of Things).

Current key fields of expertise and active engagement:

• Usability and interface research for online data collection applications ; e.g. surveys, events, interactive learning, forms, voting, polling etc. (also for disadvantaged groups : youth, elderly)
• Development of online applications and platforms (e.g. : www.1ka.si; CMS systems)
• Information society research : measuring the information society, indicators of the information society, Internet of Things, Digital divide research (focus on disadvantaged groups), E-government and M-government, Innovative pre-commercial procurement (PCP), Hate speech online, Social networks
• Social  sciences methodology : Time distance methodology, Decision support, Time series, Markov chains, Indicators (ICT and learning)