Evaluation Tools and Techniques for Citizen Science
This research focuses on developing tools and measures for evaluating citizen science projects, through which members of the public collaborate on scientific research to address real-world problems and questions. Our work applies social theory to understand practical problems in citizen science. Through careful attention to context and practice, we develop actionable insights for designing and managing citizen science projects and their related technologies.
For example, with support from the U.S. Geological Survey, we have partnered with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center to develop and test contextually-appropriate tools for evaluating science productivity. Due to the diversity of goals and practices in citizen science projects, measuring science outcomes requires a holistic approach, so we are developing project-level science productivity evaluation procedures suited to a wide range of project types. Other related studies focus on topics like data quality processes, embedded assessment of participants' skills, and design of training tools and materials for both project leaders and project contributors.
Contact: Andrea Wiggins
Open Source Community Health and Sustainability
Organizational engagement with open source communities continues to grow in prominence. With this organizational-communal dynamic, organizations seek ways to understand the engagement as valuable with respect to internal innovation, communal support, or foundation support. BRIDGE Lab members engage with the Linux Foundation CHAOSS (Community Health Analytics Open Source Software) project to understand this emerging topic. The methods applied are engaged scholarship, field studies, and interviews.
Contact: Matt Germonprez