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Values-Based Data Science & Design
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Improve Structural Features

Level 3 - Structural Features (WIP)

Tidy Up Homework Struc Features
Reflection Questions
Add High School Christmas game.
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Games Unlocked: Structural Feature's Interview, Field Tripping, Salvage
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Outcomes • Can identify structural features of different scenarios live and from memory • An intuition for when structural features lead to norms or goals
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Sharing Circle

Everyone takes turns in the circle sharing a value of theirs they lived up to that day, and a value that they didn’t, along with brief stories about what happened.

Value I managed to live up to:

Value I didn't live up to:

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🚩Flagpost: Redesign Method

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Teachers Notes
  • Structural features interact with values in two ways 1) Hard steps harder 2) Generating norms, goals.
  • Class Overview ⇒
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🖥 Tracing Norms from Structural Features

Example: Structural features which generate norms

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Here are three Social System, each with a Structural Feature and the Norm which emerges:

Social System: Criminal Records

Structural Feature: Durability - Permanent

Norm Generated: Self Censorship

Dinner Party at the Community Centre

Pretext - Unclear Depth - Acquaintances

Defaulting to a safe conversation, Small talk

Ted X Stage

Audience Size - Big Durability - Permanent

Polished work

Example: Political debate on Facebook

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Our prompt: Why is facebook not an ideal platform for Political debate? What does a social media technology look like that might be able to prevent an unnecessary war?...
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All structural features of Facebook news feed comments
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🌳 Personal Value that was suppressed (way you couldn't be/approach things/treat people):

Open-mindedness - approaching conversation as an ongoing exploration, seeking out viewpoints that challenge my own, and deeply reflecting on how my view is evolving.

💍🛃 Expectations that suppressed the value (following social norms or promoting ideologies):

1) I need to come off as smart and informed (and think of myself as such)

2) I need to have a sense of orientation and understand how the world works

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Structural Features

!Status - Celebrity

!Time Together - None

Depth - Mixed

Organisation - in my friend list

3) Many ideologies; a tendency to defend or support others in your own "tribe"

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Structural Features

Connectivity - In pairs

!Gestures - like, love, haha, wow, sad, angry — follow, don't show, block

!Stakes - Low

Status - Celebrity

Time Together - None

Depth - Mixed

📈 Goals and Fears that suppressed the value (strategies to get certain outcomes):

4) Running up points on the like button to like myself and be liked be others

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Structural Features

!Timing - Off the cuff

!Pretext - Shared topic? Unclear - original post?? Is it even shared? Conversation drift / Lack of Shared Goal

Feedback - like, love, haha, wow, sad, angry — follow, don't show, block

5) Win this tiny thread so I can feel superior and leave this thread alone

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Structural Features

!Gestures - like, love, haha, wow, sad, angry — follow, don't show, block

!Loyalty - Transient

!Depth - Mixed

!Interreliance -Independant

Time Together - None

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Question Time: Do those overriding norms evolve because of some structural features?
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⚙️Walkthrough Tour of Structural Features

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Take five minutes to look through this list of structural features and to think through the four situations beneath. For each situation, take note of two (or more) structural features you notice.

What two structural features characterise a dinner with friends?

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What were the structural features again?
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Click this for the filled in sheet "Dinner with friend"
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What two structural features characterise a team meeting?

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What were the structural features again?
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Click this for the filled in sheet "Team Meeting"
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What two structural features characterise a poetry reading?

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What were the structural features again?
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Click this for the filled in sheet "Poetry Reading"
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Teachers Notes
  • How to teach - intro cheat sheet, answer questions, have them think for 5 about 2SF for each situation, go through filled in sheets when they are done, what surprises them, what do they not get?
  • Do you know what these mean?
  • Do you get WHY something is X in this situation?
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Which of these are you least clear on?

Parasocial interaction (PSI) is a term coined by Donald Horton and Richard Wohl in 1956 to refer to a kind of psychological relationship experienced by an audience in their mediated encounters with performers in the mass media, particularly on television.[1] Viewers or listeners come to consider media personalities as friends, despite having limited interactions with them. PSI is described as an illusionary experience, such that media audiences interact with personas (e.g., talk show host, celebrities, fictional characters, social media influencers) as if they are engaged in a reciprocal relationship with them.

  • Which to you sticks out the most, is most obvious to what is possible there and what not?
  • 2 Player: Player 1 fills out No.1 while Player 2 filles out No.2 - Discuss No.3
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😱 A Meaningless Time Interview

A Meaningless Time

💩 Meaningless Time (one that felt empty, pointless, shitty):

🌳 Personal Value that was suppressed (way you couldn't be/approach things/treat people):

...treat people with ...act ...approach things ...keep things

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Is it a value?

Let's clarify your value to make sure that it isn't polluted with norms, goals, fears, etc. Note that your value might already be on spot, in which case you don't need to answer the questions below.

  • Would it still be worth doing independent of the outcome? If so, continue to the next bullet point. If not, it's a goal or fear! Take notes below.

    • "How would I want to approach things/treat people/etc. if I couldn't affect the outcome?"

  • Would still be worth doing if no one knew you did it? If so, continue to the next question. If not, it's a social norm. Take notes below.

    • "How would I want to approach things/treat people/etc. if no one noticed?"

  • Do you believe you could still be a good person even if you failed to be this way? If so, continue to the next question. If not, it's an internalized social norm. Take notes below.

    • "How would I want to approach things/treat people/etc. if there were no rules?"

  • Would it still be worth being this way if no one else ever joined in? If so, (after all the questions above) it's probably a value! If not, it’s an ideological commitment. Take notes below.

    • "How would I want to approach things/treat people/etc. if I couldn't influence anyone?

    Write your clarified 🌳 Personal Value in the box below using one of the following pre-fixes.

    approaching things ___, treating people ___, acting ___, keeping things ___, living life ____

💍🛃 Expectations that suppressed the value (following social norms / promoting ideologies):

📈 Goals/Fears that suppressed the value (strategies to get certain outcomes):

⚙ Structural Features Dump

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Teachers Notes

Interview the student

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🔧 Salvage Interview

First Sweep

For each expectation and goal click the button + I found a norm / expectation.... Then copy and paste the expectation or goal from 'A Meaningless Time' into the first grey box. In the second box, list the structural features that fosters this norm.

Second Sweep

Go through each expectation or goal again. Choose a structural feature to change, which will support the value you are designing for. After identifying this structural feature, write how this might look like in the context of the meaningless time.

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Example

What norm / expectation / goal / ideological commitment do you notice here?

Running up points on the like button to like myself and be liked be others

From what structural features does this non-value emerge?

Timing - Off the cuff,

Organization - Shared topic - original post?? Is it even shared? Conversation drift / Lack of Shared Goal,

Feedback - like, love, haha, wow, sad, angry — follow, don't show, block

How can you change these structural features to deescalate or flip this non-value?

Feedback - Remove Feedback / Change Feeback Pretext - Shared Goal - Give the poster options to explicitely state the goal of the discussion Timing - Contemplative - People's profiles have a top 3 'takes' e.g. Goto War/ Don't goto war - They can only change this once every week

What norm / expectation / goal / ideological commitment do you notice here?

From what structural features does this non-value emerge?

How can you change these structural features to deescalate or flip this non-value?

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Cheat Sheet
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🤔 Reflection questions

Think back to a recent situation when an expectation or goal crowded out a personal value of yours. Can you identify the structural features that were linked to this expectation or goal?

Think of one setting where it seems particularly possible to live by a value of yours. What are the structural features of that space that seem relevant to that?

At the end of this class, what questions remain open? What would you like to practice more?

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🕵 Homework: Fieldtrip!

Pick one or two places this weekend to analyse, with the help of structural features.

Where did you go?

What structural features did you notice?

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Audience — Size:

How many people are present?

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Audience — Loyalty:

Are people going to stick around?

Examples: Loyal — dinner with close friends. Trapped — WhatsApp group, open mic Fickle — people passing on the street Unclear — you can’t tell

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Audience — Feedback:

What kinds of responses are possible?

Examples: like | friend | follow | thank | review | comment | join | commit | request | buy | eye contact | body language | hand signals

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Audience — Time Together:

How long are we present?

Examples: None — twitter, news feed Brief — speed dating Some — weekend workshop Enduring — workmates, old friends, family

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Connections — Matchmaking:

What clues connect people?

Examples: Deep Context — education, talents, skill sets, interests, values Shallow Markings — age, class, gender, race, beauty None/Random — chat roulette

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Connections — Interreliance:

Do we need each other to proceed?

Examples: Dependent — parents/children, gatekeepers Interdependent— congress, social club Independent — news feed

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Connections — Depth:

How well are people acquainted?

Examples: close friends | acquaintances | strangers | anonymous | mixed |

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Connections — Form:

How do we interact?

Examples: In pairs — news feed Teams — sports league Whole Group — sharing circle Disjointed — high school dance (in-groups/out-groups)

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Contribution — Pretext:

Why are we communicating?

Examples: Shared Goal — team meeting Shared Value — close friends Shared Topic — comment thread Interlocking Goals — marketplace Unclear — strangers at a party

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Contribution — Pace:

How quickly are we communicating?

Examples: Off the cuff — improv, chat rooms Asynchronous — texting Thoughtful — journal and share Contemplative — blog posts

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Contribution — Filter:

Why is this or that person talking?

Examples: Invited — dinner/camping trip Uninvited — question time at a public event / comment in a public forum Selective — standard barrier (e.g., university)

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Consequences — Status:

Is there a social hierarchy?

Examples: Flat — no, we focus on equality Ranked — scores or skill levels Celebrity — huge differences

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Consequences — Stakes:

How much will outcomes affect me?

Examples: High — THIS MATTERS!!! Medium — I'll live either way, but... Low — who cares?

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Consequences — Durability:

Will what I say stick around?

Examples: Ephemeral — Talking at a bar Temporary — Snapchat Searchable (w/effort) — Microfiche Permanent Record — Twitter

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Other Features:

What else is relevant to the situation?

List the norms and goals you observe

Answer these questions! Generate a new template for each non-value you find by clicking on the + grey button beneath.

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Cheat Sheet
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