University of Canberra: Personal Reflection on Social Informatics

This essay presents a personal reflection on the readings and discussions covered in a Social Informatics course at the University of Canberra. The reflection highlights key learnings, including the understanding that technological change is a constant driver of economic transformation and profoundly shapes human lives. The author discusses the role of technology as a component, object, process, or service, and its evolution through invention, diffusion, and innovation. Emphasis is placed on the importance of understanding the social context in shaping technology and vice versa. The essay also reflects on interactive design principles, underscoring the significance of human-centered design and the consideration of physical, activity, context, and technology (PACT) factors. Furthermore, the reflection touches upon the analysis of technology through utopian and anti-utopian lenses and the direct impact of information and communication technology on organizations and social life.

Running head: PERSONAL REFLECTION
Personal Reflection
Name of the student
Name of the University
Author note

1PERSONAL REFLECTION
Social informatics refer to the studying of the information along with communication
tools within the cultural context. Social informatics forms a part of larger body in relation to
socio-economic research. It is indicative of body of the research that deals with the social
aspects in relation to computerization. This essay discusses about the personal reflection on
the readings that have been covered in the course.
I have learnt that change is permanent in relation to technology systems.
Technological development acts as the main driver in relation to economic transformation. I
have acquired the knowledge that technology does not merely help in human activity but it
helps in giving direction to the human lives. The human actions pave the path for changes in
relation to functioning of the tools. Technology can take the form of a component, object,
process or a service. I have gained knowledge that technological change acts as the
evolutionary process that can help in providing insights into various phenomena. I learnt that
technology can be shaped with the help of invention, diffusion and the innovation. The social
structure can play a role in the modification of technology which in turn helps in shaping the
social context. I was able to know from the readings that technology change can help in
bringing about economic growth in the long run.
I learnt that the starting of creative design, designer should develop understanding of
people associated with a particular product or a system. The designers should generate
requirements in relation to the system that would be designed. I was able to learn that
requirement work, design process, design representation along with evaluation can be said to
be tightly woven. I learnt in the course that requirements can be of two kind - functional
along with non-functional. Envisionment can help in making the ideas visible and
externalization can take up various forms- presentations, sketches, software prototypes and
the cardboard models. Envisionment is of crucial importance for the human-centred design
that can help the designers in seeing the things from the perspectives of other people.

2PERSONAL REFLECTION
Interactive Design revolves around the designing of the interactive products that can
help in supporting communication of people. I learnt that it is important that designers should
know about PACT- Physical, Activities, Context and the Technologies. I have learnt that
interactive designing can develop the usable products and it also involves the users in the
process of designing. I have learnt that critiques of technological anti-utopian can help in
examining how technology acts as the enabler of destructive social order. I have learnt that
utopian along with anti-utopian analysis act as legitimate forms pertaining to speculative
enquiry. I have understood that information along with communication technology have a
direct effect on the organisations along with social life.
Social informatics is indicative of studying of the communication tools in the context
of culture. Human actions lead to changes pertaining to functioning of tools. Technological
development can path the path for economic transformation of a country. It is important that
before creative designing process starts, designer should be able to know understanding of the
people related to a particular product. Interactive Designing deals with designing of
interactive products that can support communication of the people.