Caroline Haythornthwaite

Caroline Haythornthwaite is the Director & Professor at the Library, Archival and Information Studies, School of (SLAIS), University of British Columbia. Her research areas explore the way interaction via computer media supports and affects work, learning, and social interaction, primarily from a social network analysis perspective

Education

In 1975 Caroline graduated from Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario where she completed a B.Sc in Psychology. After completing her B.S.c degree, Caroline completed a Masters degree in Psychology, graduating a year later in 1976 from the University of Toronto. After a number of years in employment, Caroline completed an M.I.S. in Information Science at the University of Toronto in 1992, before going on to complete her Ph.D. in Information Science in 1996.

Awards & Recognition

During her education and subsequent time in employment, Caroline has received numerous awards and recognitions. She has also received several scholarships during her University education, including:

• 1974-5 Trent University Scholarship
• 1974  J.P. Scott Memorial Scholarship, (Psychology), Trent University
• 1975-6 National Research Council Scholarship
• 1992-3, 1993-4, 1995-6 Ontario Graduate Scholarship

She also received fellowships during 1992-3, and 1994-5 whilst at the University of Toronto; and also during 2007-8 from the National Center for Supercomputing Applications Awards which Caroline has received have included: 1975  Department of Psychology Prize, Trent University

• 1999 Winner, ALISE Research Paper Competition ($500 cash prize)
• 1999-2000 Centennial Scholar Award, GSLIS, UIUC ($4500 in research funds)

In 2005 Caroline received a lifetime membership from the Association of Internet Researchers for contribution to the Association.

Caroline has also received numerous forms of recognition, including:
PAPERS SELECTED AS BEST IN SESSION OR TRACK

• 1994 Haythornthwaite, Wellman & Mantei, 1994: 27th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences
• 1999  Haythornthwaite, 1999: 32nd Hawaii International Conf. on System Sciences
• 2000  Kanfer, Haythornthwaite, Bowker, Bruce, Burbules, Porac & Wade
• 2000: Academic- Industry Working Conference on Research Challenges

Current Professional Position

Caroline Haythornthwaite is currently working for the University of British Colombia. She began working in the School of Library, Archival and Information Sciences at the Universities iSchool in 2010. Caroline is a Director and Professor at the University. She also has further roles at the University as she is a member of a number of committees including the UBC Scholarly Communications Steering Committee and the UBC advisory committee for policy review on information systems and assets use and security. Caroline is interested in how the Internet and Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) can support learning, work and the social interaction between people. This interest can be seen throughout her research which focuses on this area. Her research is conducted through the analysis of Social Networks.

Co-Authored Work

Caroline has written many journals, articles and has co-authored five books to date. These books again focus on the Internet, E-learning and the culture and communities in online education.

"E-learning Theory and Practice" By Caroline Haythornthwaite and Richard Andrew

Her most recent co-authored work is 'E-learning Theory and Practice' which came out in 2011. This book discusses different perspectives on E-learning. This book aims to help those involved in E-learning to gain an understanding of new learning practices and for the learners themselves to gain an understanding of their role as active participants in both the classroom and lifelong learning.

"Handbook of E-Learning Research" By Caroline Haythornthwaite and Richard Andrew

Caroline worked alongside Richard Andrews previously to produce 'Handbook of E-learning Research in 2006. This book provides the reader with reviews of E-learning research. This book contains the basics of E-learning as well as new perspectives in the area.

"AoIR Internet Annual, Volume 4" By Caroline Haythornthwaite and Mia Consalvo

In 2006 Caroline worked alongside Mia Consalvo to produce AoIR Internet Annual, Volume 4. This book is a collection of highlights from a number of scholars who made contributions at the 2005 Association of Internet Researchers conference or AoIR conference.

"Learning, Culture and Community in Online Education: Research and Practice" By Caroline Haythornthwaite and Michelle. M. Kazmer

In 1996 the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign began the LEEP program. This allowed learners from across the US and the world, to take part in an internet based learning program which enabled them to earn a Master's degree. The aim of this book was to bring together new research concerning online education and used the LEEP program as a model to show the benefits of online education.

"The Internet in Everyday Life" By Caroline Haythornthwaite and Barry Wellman

The Internet in Everyday Life concentrated on 19 studies. These studies were used to discuss the domestication of the Internet in day-to-day life and also brought about the idea of new questions and methodologies that may need to be asked in the future of Internet Studies.

Criticisms of Caroline's Work

The Internet in Everyday Life

Haythornthwaite’s popular book ‘The Internet in Everyday Life’ has received some criticism from both peers and literary critics(ref). Mary Chayko of the College of Saint Elizabeth stated that the arguments in the book relied too heavily on quantitative research data, the nature of which would result in the contributors findings soon becoming obsolete.(ref) Robert E. Wood of http://muse.jhu.edu supported this in his review of the book as well as seeing a need for more contextual research, stating that “The studies make important statements at this level — based mainly on large-scale surveys and quantitative analyses — but collectively also point toward the need for more fine-grained and context-specific studies”. Wood also describes the “vast generalisations” the contributors make during a number of the books chapters. (ref)

Kris Cohen of the universities of Surrey and Chicago took this notion a step further during his review of the book, telling of a narrative that has appeared in similar literature and is present in ‘The Internet in Everyday Life’. (ref) This narrative describes how ‘qualitative and quantitative researchers, social scientists and Humanities researchers, continue to work, each in our own worlds, heedless’. (ref)

Cohen raises another issue with ‘The Internet in Everyday Life’, criticising the book as being too ‘polemic’.(ref) Cohen states that a ‘study of [Internet] users in Pittsburgh, which suggested that heavy internet use might lead to depression and isolation, received national attention from the media’ by Kraut et al (1998) is a reference to thirteen out of twenty (65%) of essays referenced in the book, and eighteen out of twenty essays (90%) respond explicitly to the moralistic question set forth by Kraut et al, “thereby accepting its terms and conditions”. (ref) Cohen also sees a contradiction in this bias, with Haythornthwaite setting out to address Kraut et al’s moralistic question by 'rejecting the question' itself, whilst the other contributors get trapped in that paper’s moralistic framework (ref).

Learning Culture and Community in Online Education: Research and Practice

In her mainly positive review of Haythornthwaites paper ‘Learning, Culture and Community in Online Education: Research and Practice’, Nora Wright of the University of California found one problem with the paper, in that it appears less approachable to students and researchers than the content would suggest. Wright states that ‘Learning, Culture and Community in Online Education’ is not for “library information science people only, although it may seem to be at first glance”.