http://hdl.handle.net/2142/8951 Dissertations and Theses from GSLIS http://hdl.handle.net/2142/13247 Development of the buildings, policy and collection of the University of Illinois library in Urbana, 1897-1940 Ratcliffe Jr., Thomas Edward University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Library Library buildings http://hdl.handle.net/2142/11969 Website Structure Jackson, Larry S. This dissertation reports the results of an exploratory data analysis investigation of the relationship between the structures used for information organization and access and the associated storage structures within state government websites. Extending an earlier claim that hierarchical directory structures are both the preeminent information organization and file storage mechanism, three different classes of overall website structure were found to be identifiable by linear classifiers, when trained on features of the website hypertext graphs. Two more structural types, not analyzed with the classifiers, were suggested through an examination of misclassified websites. Further, the notion of website structure was found to be best modeled recursively, allowing variation on a sub-graph level, instead of deeming a structural class to apply to the entirety of a website. Linear discriminant analysis was used to construct a series of experimental classifiers, using subsets of ten features identified by either earlier classifiers or principal components analysis. Two groups of features, seemingly reflecting website size and graph density, were found to convey somewhat redundant information to the classifiers, in this application. A number of other practices in website implementation were uncovered that engender classifier errors, arguing for either the deliberate inclusion of websites having these properties in the training dataset, or the expansion of the feature set. Hierarchical cluster analysis and blockmodeling of whole-website graphs were also briefly investigated, and found to occasionally contribute file relatedness information of fundamentally distinct types, and information sometimes at variance with directory structure usage for file storage. Multiple literatures suggest a number of social factors that may influence the way websites and webpages are constructed within an organization, particularly the differing types of administrative control in bureaucracies, and the nature of help-seeking in technology work. While traces reminiscent of these suggestions were encountered, investigation of social causal factors behind website structural choices in the organizational types and workplace styles of the sponsoring agency remains a task for other researchers. website structure hypertext graph linear discriminant analysis linear classifier website archiving state government websites Illinois State Library http://hdl.handle.net/2142/11968 Automated Discovery of Social Networks in Online Learning Communities Gruzd, Anatoliy A. As a way to gain greater insights into the operation of online communities, this dissertation applies automated text mining techniques to text-based communication to identify, describe and evaluate underlying social networks among online community members. The main thrust of the study is to automate the discovery of social ties that form between community members, using only the digital footprints left behind in their online forum postings. Currently, one of the most common but time consuming methods for discovering social ties between people is to ask questions about their perceived social ties. However, such a survey is difficult to collect due to the high investment in time associated with data collection and the sensitive nature of the types of questions that may be asked. To overcome these limitations, the dissertation presents a new, content-based method for automated discovery of social networks from threaded discussions, referred to as ‘name network’. As a case study, the proposed automated method is evaluated in the context of online learning communities. The results suggest that the proposed ‘name network’ method for collecting social network data is a viable alternative to costly and time-consuming collection of users’ data using surveys. The study also demonstrates how social networks produced by the ‘name network’ method can be used to study online classes and to look for evidence of collaborative learning in online learning communities. For example, educators can use name networks as a real time diagnostic tool to identify students who might need additional help or students who may provide such help to others. Future research will evaluate the usefulness of the ‘name network’ method in other types of online communities. E-learning Network Visualization Online Communities Social Network Analysis Text Mining http://hdl.handle.net/2142/11699 From Outreach to Engagement: An Actor-Network-Theory Analysis of Attracting Spanish-speaking Participants to Public Programming Gretencord, Timnah Card This study is an investigation and analysis of the process of developing new partnerships among public service agencies and making more durable connections with local Spanish-speaking families that seeks to answer the question: “What forces motivate and demotivate members of this minority community to participate in public programs designed to increase participants’ ability to self-direct?” A conveniently accessed but purposefully selected sample of public service agency employees and Spanish-speaking family members, especially parents and grandparents returned qualitative and quantitative data from more than a year of participant observations and interviewing. These data were coded and then analyzed according to the principles of “translation” as described in actor-network-theory to discover some reasons why certain public programs saw higher attendance from the target population. Factors such as the terms of employment, family demands such as food preparation, access to transportation, and social connections motivate and demotivate minority involvement in public service programming. However, the impact of these factors is altered among individuals and families who self-identify as information and help sources—in their own terms, fuentes—for their social circle. These fuentes describe what may be termed religious or ethical ‘conversion experiences’ to their community work, experiences that continue to define their motivating ideals. Some fuentes view the recruitment of additional fuentes as essential to future success, both in public service agency outreach and in minority community activism, to sustain and to replace existing fuentes who grow weary under their responsibilities. community informatics community engagement Latino Latina studies Library and Information Science actor-network-theory action research