Community Informatics的“西学东渐”——期待与思考

Community Informatics in the Process of Orientalization:Expectations and Reflections

本文阐释了Community Informatics(CI,"社群信息学")的内涵和主要思想,认为它与我国的社区信息化和农村信息化分享共同的兴趣与宗旨,即运用现代信息技术推动社区发展;与社区/农村信息化相比,CI之新在于,它以社群主义、网络社会理论、社会资本理论等当代社会科学理论为基础,强调ICT应用中的社区振兴(或社区赋权)和社区参与。本文认为这些新理论以及与之相适应的新方法对解决我国社区/农村信息化效益低下等问题具有重要的参考价值。本文也提出了与CI引进相关的其他问题,例如CI应该成为谁的视角和方法,应该如何规划自己的"东渐"路径与前景。

This essay explains the concept and theoretical framework of Community Informatics. It argues that Community Informatics shares a common interest and mission in promoting the development of community by modem information technology with research and practices of community infonnatization and rural informatization in China, but differs from the latter in its theo- retical perspectives which rooted very much in modem social science theories like communitarianism, network theory and social capital theory and which emphasize community empowerment and participation in ICY applications. It is these perspectives, this essay argues, that hold great potentials for CI to contribute to community/rttral informatization in China. This essay also raises a number of questions in relation to CI＇s attempted orentalization. 20 refs.