R: Re: {Ushahidi-Research} master thesis

[ania....@libero.it]

Hi,

I am at the beginning of my PhD thesis which will be very much similar to the Matteo's one, but instead ofocusing on general crisis situations, I want to analyze if platform such as Ushahidi can be effective in gathering data for risk assessments for electoral violence.

As I said, I am at the very beginning and some of the questions  that Matteo asked are  the same that I will address during my reasearch, so Matteo, I really hope we keep in touch and see if I will be able to answer to some of them in the near future..

I am also Italian and I am doing my PhD at the University of Reading, UK.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon!

Stefania.

----Messaggio originale----
Da: timkoc...@gmail.com
Data: 17/11/2011 23.32
A: <ushahidi...@googlegroups.com>
Ogg: Re: {Ushahidi-Research} master thesis

That sounds like great thesis material.  Has anyone had any ideas on what to do or done any work with the crisis data collected from various Ushahidi projects?  --Tim K.  

On Thu, Nov 17, 2011 at 9:39 AM, Matteo Beltramin <matteo.b...@gmail.com> wrote:

HI
I am Matteo Beltramin, I am a final year double degree student in
Marketing and communication (Venice Italy) and Master in Management at
ESCP Europe – Paris.

The theme of my master thesis is:
“The use of social media in non-profit platforms. Can they increase
the speed and efficiency in the resolution of crises and emergencies
than using traditional means?"

In the thesis i want to analyze Ushahidi.
I have some questions for the community.

Can ushahidi become a standard for information during a crisis?

During a crisis is Ushahidi and its integration with twitter better
then a traditional media?

During a crisis do you think it's necessary to have some tools
(Swiftriver) that try to determine the authenticity of what is being
reported? Are they efficients? Can they be improved?

Best regards
Matteo Beltramin

--
>>>>>>>>>>
Tim Kochanski
M.S. Economics 

Portland, Oregon 97201
cell: (503) 928-0187

>>>>>>>>>>

[Matteo Beltramin]

Hi,
ok for me it's perfect if we keep in touch.

On 18 Nov, 00:29, "ania.pe...@libero.it" <ania.pe...@libero.it> wrote:
> Hi,
> I am at the beginning of my PhD thesis which will be very much similar to the Matteo's one, but instead ofocusing on general crisis situations, I want to analyze if platform such as Ushahidi can be effective in gathering data for risk assessments for electoral violence. As I said, I am at the very beginning and some of the questions  that Matteo asked are  the same that I will address during my reasearch, so Matteo, I really hope we keep in touch and see if I will be able to answer to some of them in the near future..
> I am also Italian and I am doing my PhD at the University of Reading, UK.
> Looking forward to hearing from you soon!
> Stefania.
>
> ----Messaggio originale----
>

> Da: timkochan...@gmail.com

>
> Data: 17/11/2011 23.32
>
> A: <ushahidi...@googlegroups.com>
>
> Ogg: Re: {Ushahidi-Research} master thesis
>
> That sounds like great thesis material.  Has anyone had any ideas on what to do or done any work with the crisis data collected from various Ushahidi projects?  --Tim K.
>

[Clara Straimer]

Hello Tim,

Regarding your question whether or not there has been research on the Ushahidi crisis data, Patrick Meier integrated some analysis of the platform into his PhD - You can find it here: http://irevolution.net/2011/11/15/copy-of-dissertation/

The second half of the dissertation assesses the impact of “liberation technologies” during the Egyptian Parliamentary Elections and Sudanese Presidential Elections of 2010. The analysis focused specifically on the use of Ushahidi—a platform often referred to as a “liberation technology.” ... As for Ushahidi, the Egyptian and Sudanese dictatorships were indeed threatened by the technology because it challenged the status quo. Evidence suggests that this challenge tipped the balance of power marginally in favor of civil society in Egypt, but not in the Sudan, and overall not significantly.

I met some researchers during the crisismappers conference but I think most of them also focus on the macro-political level and are less concerned with the actual data collected.

I also found a powerpoint that outlines some of the current research carried out by Ushahidi and long-term questions that are worth addressing: http://www.slideshare.net/hfordsa/ushahidi-research-establishing-a-learning-organisation

Heather, I am not sure if we are missing something here?

I think it would be very interesting to pull out some descriptive stats - although that is probably already in progress (i.e. SwiftRiver)? I was thinking about things like timeline - how long after setting up the platform did reports start to come in - or number of reports accepted and number rejected (what percentage of reports was deemed useful), etc.

Apart from these descriptive stats, it might be interesting to do some content analysis - i.e. if indicated what was the identity (gender, age, etc.) of those reporting and did the issues they reported differ? What were the predominant issues reported (which should be easy because reports are already categorised)? Is there any way of prioritising the messages on the basis of their content?

My impression is that there is some thinking currently within Ushahidi and the Standby Task Force about how to move away from the red dots to identifying 'hotspots' but I think Ushahidi members might give more accurate information on this.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this Heather.

Best,
Clara

2011/11/18 Matteo Beltramin <matteo.b...@gmail.com>

--

Clara Straimer

+44 (0) 7541 592 643
claras...@gmail.com

[Heather Ford]

Thanks so much for your insights, Clara. And great to hear about your research, Matteo and Stefania!

More below:

On Nov 18, 2011, at 3:23 AM, Clara Straimer wrote:

Hello Tim,

Regarding your question whether or not there has been research on the Ushahidi crisis data, Patrick Meier integrated some analysis of the platform into his PhD - You can find it here: http://irevolution.net/2011/11/15/copy-of-dissertation/

The second half of the dissertation assesses the impact of “liberation technologies” during the Egyptian Parliamentary Elections and Sudanese Presidential Elections of 2010. The analysis focused specifically on the use of Ushahidi—a platform often referred to as a “liberation technology.” ... As for Ushahidi, the Egyptian and Sudanese dictatorships were indeed threatened by the technology because it challenged the status quo. Evidence suggests that this challenge tipped the balance of power marginally in favor of civil society in Egypt, but not in the Sudan, and overall not significantly.

I met some researchers during the crisismappers conference but I think most of them also focus on the macro-political level and are less concerned with the actual data collected.

I also found a powerpoint that outlines some of the current research carried out by Ushahidi and long-term questions that are worth addressing: http://www.slideshare.net/hfordsa/ushahidi-research-establishing-a-learning-organisation

Heather, I am not sure if we are missing something here?

Sorry, not sure I understand. What's missing?

I think it would be very interesting to pull out some descriptive stats - although that is probably already in progress (i.e. SwiftRiver)? I was thinking about things like timeline - how long after setting up the platform did reports start to come in - or number of reports accepted and number rejected (what percentage of reports was deemed useful), etc.

I think this kind of research is really missing so I'm glad to hear that Rob will also be looking at this with his research project. Not that this should stop you from doing this too -- there's a lot that can be gained from really analysing real data sets and the more the merrier as far as I'm concerned :)

Apart from these descriptive stats, it might be interesting to do some content analysis - i.e. if indicated what was the identity (gender, age, etc.) of those reporting and did the issues they reported differ? What were the predominant issues reported (which should be easy because reports are already categorised)? Is there any way of prioritising the messages on the basis of their content?

My impression is that there is some thinking currently within Ushahidi and the Standby Task Force about how to move away from the red dots to identifying 'hotspots' but I think Ushahidi members might give more accurate information on this.

Not quite sure what you mean here. Definitely think that the data is a great starting point :)

Best,

Heather.

Heather Ford 

Ethnographer: Ushahidi / SwiftRiver

http://ushahidi.com | http://swiftly.org 

@hfordsa on Twitter

http://hblog.org

[Saila Lindroos]

Hi there,

You might want to have a look at my thesis about social media and reconciliation in Kenya. (Includes a chapter about Ushahidi)

http://dare.uva.nl/document/333382

[Heather Ford]

Thanks, Sally. I have added to our Mendeley group http://www.mendeley.com/groups/1583283/ushahidi/papers/ 

but perhaps add some details (e.g. I couldn't find a date on the publication). 

Had a quick read. interesting stuff!

Best,

Heather.

[Saila Lindroos]

Hi Heather,

I guess you were writing to me?

Here's some more info on my thesis http://dare.uva.nl/fi/scriptie/392152 . It was published 28.10.2011. 

Auteur	Saila Lindroos
Titel	Facebook and peace in Nairobi : a reception study of social media in post‐conflict Kenya
Begeleiders	Saskia Baas, Josh Maiyo
Jaar	2011
Pagina's	73
Faculteit	Faculteit der Maatschappij- en Gedragswetenschappen
Instituut/afd.	FMG: International School for Humanities and Social Sciences
Opleiding	FMG Conflict Resolution and Governance
Soort document	scriptie master
Download bestand	document/333382

Saila

[Heather Ford]

Apologies, Saila. 

Feel free to edit the Mendeley group with the info!

Thanks!

Best,

heather.