Agency of non-humans in a practice of mathematics education

A variety of healthcare robots for elderly care have been developed. However, as the elderly and caregivers experience psychological resistance towards not only new technologies but specifically to robots, the adoption of healthcare robots has scarcely progressed. This article aims to develop a service design method, which consists of a design process including design tools to identify jobs in an elderly care facility and to reveal what kinds of jobs to assign to service robots and to caregivers. This article develops a design method which is composed of six steps and adopts original design tools to identify jobs needed in elderly care facilities and assign them to human and non-human actors, including service robots. The tools include an actor map to visualize the Actor to Actor (A2A) network, a current jobs to be done (JTBD) worksheet to visualize existing jobs, a new JTBD worksheet to visualize new jobs, and an actor worksheet to summarize information about each actor including their philosophy. With this design method, we conducted a series of workshops with the aim to develop a service fulfilled by humans and non-humans at an elderly care facility in Shizuoka prefecture in Japan. The results of questionnaires administered to the workshop participants demonstrated the effectiveness of all the tools except the new JTBD worksheet. Also, the results of interviews with employees in the elderly care facility indicated the effectiveness of the approach, which reveals visible and invisible regulative, normative and cultural-cognitive elements through interviews with human actors, and embeds them in the service design process. The design method including the original design tools proposed in this article contribute to a service design method for the use of robots in elderly care facilities by allocating jobs to human actors and non-human actors appropriately, and it also contributes to the issue of psychological resistance to the adoption of service robots in these facilities, which brings efficiencies to society. The contribution of this article is to reframe the issue of resistance to the adoption of service robots in elderly care facilities to the issue of what kinds of jobs in an elderly care facility should be assigned to service robots or caregivers, and the development of a service design process including original design tools.

Objective: This study examines the efficacy of enculturation of academic integrity, in the context of an automated student plagiarism management system (ASPMS) at a private higher education institution (PHEI) to provide heuristics for related endeavours. Theoretical Framework: In this topic, the main theory underpinning the research is the Actor-Network Theory (ANT). Method: The methodology adopted for this research comprises a mixed approach, incorporating both qualitative thematic analysis of transcripts of interviews with human actors and quantitative analyses of data gathered from the ASPMS. Results and Discussion: A nuanced, gestalt-like composition of ANT relationships emerged, from which many meaningful heuristics could be derived for both enhancing, and avoiding pitfalls in, enculturation of academic integrity. The ANT perspective allows for the essential roles of human and non-human actors in the network to be assessed for efficacy in achieving the objectives of the network. Overarching heuristics include ongoing cyclic-iterative refinement of the automated system; the underpinning regulatory framework and related organisational structures; and the education/training of human actors. Research Implications: Incorporating automation in academic integrity measures, allows for the delegation of onerous tasks to non-human actors in the system. Notwithstanding, acknowledged disruptors in this evolving context, such as the advent of Large-Language Model Artificial Intelligence (LLM-AI) tools (notably, Chat-GPT), increasingly confound the detection and assessment of plagiarism. Advancing heuristics towards designing systems for enculturating academic integrity– and for concomitant evaluation of the efficacy of such actor networks (as per ANT) – comprises the major implications of this study. Originality/Value: While this study involves a relatively esoteric context – a case study involving a bespoke ASPMS at a single PHEI campus in South Africa – the heuristics have application in many systems (actor networks), with or without automation, in which academic integrity is fostered.

Recent literature shows that adopting an accounting information system (AIS) can lead to better decision-making, planning, efficiency and on-time management control, and organisational functionality. However, the impact of AIS implementation on role creation in the organisation is unclear. With the digital transformation of AIS and daily advances in machine learning and other innovative technologies, it is also unclear how these changes interact with human roles in organisations and which AIS components are considered essential. This paper addresses the above issues by applying the actor-network theory to examine the impact of deep machine learning modules in predicting the human actor roles in accounting information systems in organisations. We targeted 120 human actors and examined the influence of deep machine learning modules in predicting 11 personnel and professional features of human actors, based on multivariate statistical analysis. Our findings show that two human factors (familiarity with accounting information and time spent on becoming familiar with it) are the most influential elements that can predict the human actor roles in accounting information systems in organisations. So, human and non-human actors are both essential parts of an integrated AIS that must be considered. The current literature has focused on the AIS structure with less on the interaction between human and non-human actors. One of the main contributions of this study is providing evidence that AIS heavily relies on its human and non-human actors to form a coherent and united AIS network to promote AIS management strategies. The practical implication of the results is that investing in either technology or human resources alone is not enough to achieve the best productivity and performance in organisations. Instead, there must be a balance between human and non-human actors.

The design of inclusive public transport services is crucial for the development of modern, barrier-free smart city infrastructures. This study investigates the socio-technical networks that shape the accessibility experiences of visually-impaired passengers using the tram system in Linz, Austria. Using Actor-Network Theory (ANT) as a theoretical framework, we investigate how agency is distributed between human and non-human actors in complex socio-technical networks, re-conceptualising accessibility as an emergent network property rather than a fixed infrastructure characteristic.Our mixed-methods approach combines shadowing observations with focus group discussions. The shadowing protocol documented visually impaired participants navigating the tram system, capturing their spatial navigation techniques, interactions with the physical infrastructure, use of technological aids, communication strategies, and responses to unexpected situations. The focus group, comprising seven visually-impaired persons with varying degrees of impairment and transport experience, provided complementary insights into user experiences, challenges, and adaptation strategies.The analysis revealed four predominant dimensions influencing accessibility outcomes: (1) Network Configuration—interactions between human actors (passengers, staff) and non-human actors (assistive devices, infrastructure) collectively determined accessibility success, with translation processes mediating between different network elements; (2) Mobility Patterns—regular users demonstrated sophisticated system knowledge, with some deliberately using public transport to develop navigational skills, highlighting the importance of mental models in system navigation; (3) Technology Integration—digital tools, such as mobility phone applications enabled independence while revealing varying levels of technological comfort; and (4) Warning Systems—participants emphasized the importance of the 'two-sense principle' for warnings, with directional audio and tactile feedback being particularly valuable.In addition, we revealed multiple additional dimensions relevant in this context. These include: accessibility barriers (physical, social, technical), sophisticated user adaptation strategies, significant infrastructure design implications, organisational policy implications, complex risk management approaches, and specialized spatial navigation techniques. These findings demonstrate that accessibility challenges arise from misalignments in socio-technical networks rather than from individual limitations.Our research has significant implications for public transport design: (1) technological innovations must take into account diverse user needs and existing adaptation strategies; (2) critical "obligatory passage points" such as platform-vehicle transitions represent systemic vulnerabilities that require focused attention; (3) varying levels of technological proficiency require flexible, adaptable interface designs; (4) directional warning signals significantly improve safety by facilitating spatial orientation; and (5) human assistance remains essential alongside technological improvements, with social interactions continuing to play a critical role in accessibility outcomes.This research contributes to the broader discourse on inclusive transport systems by highlighting accessibility as an emergent property of socio-technical networks, requiring integrated approaches combining technological and social solutions. Future research will explore how emerging technologies could further improve accessibility, taking into account potential risks of exclusion, and longitudinally examine how users' navigation strategies evolve over time.

Rural community development in China has made progress under the rapid implementation of the rural revitalization strategy; however, it has also revealed challenges such as an overemphasis on spatial construction, severe homogenization, and low sustainability. Existing research on rural community development lacks sufficient localized experience, and there is a limited understanding of how the development process is generated, maintained, and evolved. This study examines Xiongfan Village in Dawu County, Hubei Province, using an innovative methodological integration of Actor-Network Theory (ANT) and Social Network Analysis (SNA). This mixed-methods approach qualitatively traces the formation of networks involving both human and non-human actors, while quantitatively mapping the collaborative structure among human actors. Qualitative analysis of actor networks identifies both human actors (such as government departments, enterprises, social organizations, and villagers) and non-human actors (such as natural and cultural landscapes) as key participants. Through processes like recruitment, mobilization, and dispute resolution, various actors have formed interest alliances centered around the core issue of “revitalizing and sustainably developing rural community resources.” Quantitative social network analysis reveals a “core-periphery” structure, with government departments and social organizations occupying central roles, while business institutions and community villagers are positioned at the periphery. This distribution contrasts with the overarching goal of community development, which seeks to enhance villagers′ intrinsic motivation. The study suggests that rural community development in this area can be improved by diversifying co-construction forms, restructuring core groups, and empowering peripheral actors. These measures will facilitate a shift from single-space development to enhanced community capacity-building, ultimately promoting sustainable rural development.

본 연구는 기존의 표준관련 연구가 실제로 표준이 만들어지고 보급되는 제반 사회적 환경과 다중 이해관계자가 존재하는 복합적인 사회시스템에서의 행위자 역할 및 변화과정을 조망하는 작업이 충분히 이루어지지 못했다는 데에서 문제의식을 갖고 출발한다. 이를 배경으로 본 연구는 사회-기술적 제도 환경의 맥락에서 각기 다른 이해관계를 가진 참여자들이 혁신적인 기술을 개발해 표준화해가는 동태적 과정을 사회-기술적 접근으로 재구성하는 것을 목적으로 수행되었다. 이를 위한 세부 목표는 첫째, 표준화 과정을 둘러싼 사회-기술적 네트워크에서 인간 행위자 간, 인간과 비인간 행위자와의 상호작용 관계의 특징을 살펴보는 것이다. 둘째로는 표준화 과정을 선도한 핵심 행위자의 활동과 역할의 변화를 관찰하고자 하였다. 이를 위하여, 행위자-네트워크 이론(Actor Network Theory)에 기초하여 한국에서 진행된 고화질 3DTV방송기술의 표준화 과정의 동태적 속성을 분석하였다. 분석방법은 연구자가 행위자-네트워크에 직접 참여하여 동태적 특성을 분석하고, 설문 인터뷰와 심층 인터뷰를 통한 질적 연구의 방법을 적용, 표준 형성과정에 나타난 제반 환경-행위-기술 동학을 고찰하였다. This study is devised out of the recognition that the existing standardization-related research has not sufficiently examined the overall social environment where a standard is actually made and diffused and the roles of the actors and the changes in them in the complex social system where multiple stakeholders exist. Against this backdrop, this study purports to reconstruct the dynamic process of developing and standardizing an innovative technology through a socio-technical approach involved by multiple stakeholders with different interests in the context of a socio-technical institutional environment. The specific goals to achieve the purpose include first, inspecting the characteristics of the interactions between the human actors and between the human and non-human actors in the socio-technical network surrounding a standardization process. Second, the study aimed to observe the activities of the focal actor who led the standardization process and its changing role. To that end, it analyzed the dynamic features of the process of standardizing a HD 3DTV broadcasting technology that took place in South Korea based on the actor network theory. As for the analysis method, the researchers personally took part in the actor network involving the new technology to analyze the dynamic characteristics of the network, applying the qualitative research method of survey and in-depth interviews and exploring the overall dynamics of environment, behavior and technology observed over the course of the entire standardization process.

The purpose of this paper is to clarify how nonhuman actors contribute to solidarity in independent new film production. Specifically, it examines independent new film productions from a relationalist perspective, using actor-network-theory (ANT), which considers humans and nonhumans as equivalent actors and analyzes phenomena based on their interactions with each other. The research method used was ethnography with a focus on participant observation. One of the authors, a filmmaker and researcher, observed the inner workings of the filmmaking activity, while the other author observed the observer from an anthropologist’s perspective. In a previous paper, we found from the process of translation that the two nonhuman actors of the film’s original story and funding are inextricably linked, and the agency of the human actors surrounding them interacts with and transforms the nonhuman actors (Coney and Ito, 2021). In the present study, we analyzed the interaction with the solidarity among human actors in the process of film production by closely following the linkage of nonhuman actors such as provisional publicity materials, in addition to funds and scripts. In the process of filmmaking, the nonhuman actors often encounter unforeseen circumstances such as budget adjustments and filming postponement, but despite the setbacks, the nonhuman actors form a network in which they accept each other’s roles, and filmmaking is promoted by solidarity as human actors of the film become more interdependent through the agency working as an inclusive collective. The results of the study revealed that the human actors in film are interdependent and that their solidarity promotes filmmaking.

The adoption of Korean children has played a significant role in the practice of intercountry adoption in Australia since the 1970s and represents the majority of overseas born children adopted into Australia. Its influence on policy and practice is explored in this thesis through the Queensland experience. From its outset the adoption of children from overseas has been characterised by polarised perspectives and vested interests. Actor Network Theory, the theoretical lens through which this phenomenon is viewed, allows for the exploration of controversies and multiple perspectives that have featured in over thirty years of Korean intercountry adoption practice in Australia. This thesis aims to identify which actor networks were influential in the emergence, diffusion and continuation of Korean intercountry adoption; and to explore the translations, an important concept in Actor Network Theory, and the tactics used by these networks to spread particular discourse to meet network goals. The methodology is qualitative and approaches Korean intercountry adoption as a case study. The data corpus, collected from 2004 to 2007 comprised text and interviews. Text included Queensland government archival records; submissions provided to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Family and Human Services Overseas Adoption in Australia 2005 and public hearing transcripts; parliamentary documents; media reports; computer-mediated communications such as internet sources and email discussion groups. Interviews were conducted with key stakeholders from interest groups and organisations with administrative roles in intercountry adoption practice in Australia. Korean intercountry adoption has proved influential in developing expectations concerning how intercountry adoption should be practised in Australia. Three actor networks, proponent, opponent and nonpartisan were identified during the diffusion and continuance periods. Actor Network Theory helped understand how the proponent network became dominant in the Australian context. A number of highly effective tactics have been used to expand and increase the influence of the proponent network through translations. However, a number of threats to continuation such as the growth of the opponent network and the promotion of Korean domestic adoption have emerged. Actors have responded to these threats in a number of ways. Detours have been proposed by proponent actors to help them reach their goals though these may bring unintended consequences. An Actor Network Theory perspective reveals the important role of the Internet; helps understand how controversies are created and perpetuated; how intercountry adoption has become politicised in Australia; and highlights the risks to child centred and knowledge based practice that politicisation brings. The significance of this study lies in the insights provided by exploring power interrelationships between actor networks and how these shape particular phenomenon, in this case, Korean intercountry adoption. Intercountry adoption in Australia is poorly understood at a macro level as are the controversies surrounding it. Its practice has been heavily influenced by the interests of the dominant network with scant attention to research in the local context. Actor Network Theory that allows for the inclusion of human and nonhuman actors such as the Internet has proven useful for developing contemporary understandings of such a complex, global phenomenon. These understandings provide opportunities for individuals, groups and governments to address controversy in ways than do not contribute to its perpetuation and to refocus their attentions on the factors that contribute to the relinquishment of children in the first instance. This thesis highlights how politically driven agendas that serve the interests of one network can marginalise voices that bring more complex understandings to the intercountry adoption phenomenon. An Actor Network Theory analysis exposes the lack of investment by governments, organisations and individuals in community programs and services that address the causes of child relinquishment and empower Korean families and communities to seek their own solutions.

This paper investigates the focal actors in a blockchain network and their heterogeneity in splits. Disagreements in blockchain communities often lead to splits in both the blockchain and the community. We use three key elements of the actor-network theory — punctualization, translation, and actor heterogeneity—and employ case study methodology to examine Bitcoin splits. We identify several human actors, such as miners, developers, merchants, and investors, as well as non-human actors, including blockchain, exchanges, hardware manufacturers, and wallets, involved in Bitcoin splits. Our results show that the consolidation of actors in homogeneous groups plays a key role in blockchain splits. We further describe how the human and non-human actors' fluid moves into micro and macro actor positions in the network affect the development of the split. In addition, we discuss the roles of these actors and their engagement in forming micro and macro agencies in blockchain splits.

We compare the scheme for educational dialogue analysis (SEDA) to the actor-network theory (ANT) for the analysis of educational dialogues. We show that ANT unearths the socio-material structure of classroom talk as networks in which human and non-human actors (texts, diagrams, instructions, etc.) exert power on each other. The application of ANT to classroom talk led us to identify (non-)dialogic networks when human actors are not subordinated (resp. subordinated) to other actors. Roles in networks are not predetermined but translated in interactions, and networks are often blackboxed, as the original process and circumstances of their creation might be ignored. We show then that the adoption of ANT (resp. SEDA) uncovers phenomena that SEDA (resp. ANT) did not identify. SEDA helps observe the co-construction of ideas and describe shifts from the dialogic to the non-dialogic but does not explain the mechanisms that lead to these shifts. ANT explains shifts from one network to another, as it conveys the change of power relations between the different actors, role of non-human actors, and shows how they shape the dynamics of networks in classroom talk. We draw from this comparison implications both for research and educational practice in dialogic education.

This study examines electoral success through the lens of Actor-Network Theory (ANT), emphasizing that power in elections is produced not solely by individual candidates or party structures, but through dynamic networks of human and non-human actors. By situating elections within relational configurations involving social ties, technology, institutions, and local values, the study contributes to political network analysis in the context of Indonesia’s open proportional representation system. Using a qualitative case study approach, the research was conducted in Bone Regency, South Sulawesi. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, observations, and document analysis, guided by the ANT principle of “following the actants.” Informants were selected purposively based on their strategic roles within the campaign network. Data analysis involved reduction, display, and verification to ensure analytical rigor and contextual validity. The findings reveal that Yasir Machmud’s electoral victory was shaped by a multi-stage network formation process, including issue mobilization, organizational structuring, integration of social media and technology, adaptive coordination, and final consolidation. Trust-based social relations, cultural values, and digital technologies functioned as interconnected actors that mediated power, mobilization, and voter engagement. Social media, algorithms, and campaign tools operated not merely as instruments, but as active agents influencing political perception and participation. The study concludes that electoral success is the outcome of a complex, adaptive actor network in which human and non-human elements interact structurally, affectively, and symbolically. This research underscores the relevance of ANT for understanding contemporary local electoral politics in Indonesia.

Objectives: Research aimed to recognize the model contestation between human and non-human actors at the arena of cycling tour in the eastern part of Indonesia in Flores Island. Methods: The research was socio-technical paper, qualitative descriptive method was used to follow the contestation value between cycling tourist and its technical actors during the journey. researchers observed and participated on cycling touring at Flores Island. All participants were Jakarta residents that had different variety of age, gender, occupation and living arrangements. variety of participants ranged in age from 44 to52 years old. total of 1 woman and 4 men were interviewed. Results: findings indicated three stages [Pre-departure cycling tour, En route cycling, and Post-cycling tour] that constructed the field of Actor-Network Theory [ANT], contested human and non-human actors, assemblage of the actors and semiotics were performed in this finding. The use of bicycle as main non-human actors to follow by cycling tourist creating the dynamic and interaction between human actors during cycling. Conclusions: research identifies human and non-human relations within cycling tour, then how the process of relation between actors construct tourism product such as cycling tours. The phrases of human and non-human agents, and sociotechnical were employed to investigate semiotics in their relationship. Values of their experiences and their style in cycling related to motives and type of bicycle. ANT approach described cycling in Flores Island, from departure– to destination or during enroute cycling till finish line, and flying back to their home country.

Learning sciences have emphasized teaching practices that engage the student in deeper and more demanding processes. The resulting learning activities are inherently complex, particularly in modern, digitally intensive science classrooms where students actively engage in collaborative investigations with digital tools. The resulting complex learning settings challenge current research methods. Inspired by methodological and theoretical developments in science education research, namely network analysis and materiality, we present a new methodological approach that is based on a combination of social network analysis and actor-network theory. Actor-network is conceptually different from social network, however it is possible to introduce the non-human actors of actor-network theory into social networks and then apply methods of social network analysis. The methodological development is presented through a case in which three students use computer-based data logging and investigate the motion of a car on a track. From this case, we report the roles, importance, and interaction patterns of actors engaged in collaborative knowledge construction. The results show the benefits and the importance of including the non-human actors from actor-network theory in quantifying the importance and the roles of the different actors. This combination allows better understanding of learning in a complex setting of human and non-human actors.

Cinematic tourism is an expanding phenomenon that examines the interaction between audiovisual products and tourist behavior, and their impact on destinations. This field investigates how films and TV shows shape perceptions of destinations and attract visitors, creating new tourism flows and economic opportunities. Actor-Network Theory (ANT) provides a nuanced approach to this study by considering the complex networks of human and non-human actors involved. Developed by Bruno Latour, Michel Callon, and John Law, ANT highlights the significance of these networks in shaping social and economic phenomena. Applying ANT to cinematic tourism reveals how films, tourists, destinations, and local actors are interconnected. This theoretical perspective involves using various research methods, including interviews, discourse analysis, and field observations, to understand how audiovisual representations influence tourist attraction and how destinations respond. ANT helps identify gaps and opportunities in the tourism sector, such as the underutilization of the audiovisual sector by many destinations. Van der Duim, Ren, and Jóhannesson (2013) emphasize ANT’s focus on multiplicity and ontological politics, arguing that tourism is composed of multiple realities and organizing attempts. They suggest that ANT provides a richer understanding of tourism dynamics by analyzing diverse interactions. Paget, Dimanche, and Mounet (2010) demonstrate how new associations between human and non-human actors, facilitated by a "leader translator," can drive a company’s success within a tourist destination by reconfiguring resources into innovative products. Chen and Wu (2013) further illustrate this by using ANT and social affordance to analyze how postmodern attractions, like those themed around Jimmy, are constructed through relational networks. This approach offers a dynamic perspective on tourism attractions, revealing how various actors shape their development.

In times when machine learning (ML) and other artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are expanding the role and definition of network learning in schools, this short paper reports from a practice-centred research project that explores how K-12 teachers affect and are affected by educational technologies with AI. Accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, data-driven and decision-making systems with ML are already entering various educational policy and practice realms, often underpinned by promises of automation and personalization. A growing number of research, drawing from the theoretical orientations and empirical approaches from Science & Technology Studies is increasingly unpacking such promises as well as addressing controversies directly related to the constitutions of ML AI in education. Still, little research explores the adoption of data-driven AI technologies in classrooms from a socio-material, networked learning stance. This short paper introduces such work (in progress) drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Sweden. Guided by the ontological and methodological approaches of Actor-Network-Theory (ANT), the study focuses on the interactions in K-12 classrooms between commercial ML technologies and teachers. Methodologically this means engaging with both human and non-human actors through ethnographic approaches striving for very specific descriptions of interactions within the actor-network and its enacted realities. Preliminary findings from the first of two envisaged case studies in which a ML-based teaching aid in mathematics was tried out in 22 classrooms indicate how compensatory and contradictory actions and accounts emerge within the network of heterogeneous actors. Human actors seem to compensate for the algorithmic actions of the specific educational technology with ML. This is however not a fait accompli but a continuous and unsettled process in the making between humans and the (non-human) technology. Preliminary results also suggest how controversies of ML algorithms in teaching aids, such as their lack of transparency and algorithmic “governance” play out in authentic learning contexts. In conclusion, the paper argues that theoretical and methodological principles of ANT grant for non-deterministic narrative of the heterogeneous nature of educational practice and have the potential to open the black-box of machine learning in the emerging networked learning settings of K-12 classrooms.