Activity U (III): Bonnie Nardi’s Choices and Boundary Knowledge Work

How to make intellectual choices in an interdisciplinary domain

This article is part of a case study: Activity U. I apply the HERO U framework and Diagram U to discuss the development of a large knowledge enterprise: Activity Theory or (Cultural-historical activity theory, CHAT).

• Part I: The Landscape of Activity Theory
• Part II: Unit of Analysis, Niches of Analysis, Levels of Analysis

Today we are going to talk about domains, transformation, and opportunity. I will focus on HCI (human-computer interaction) as an example of domains. Though I have mentioned HCI-activity theorist Bonnie A. Nardi many times, I’d like to use her career story as an example for this article too. However, I will provide more background information on the domain of HCI and use Diagram U for discussion.

Nardi’s story inspired me to create a new diagram called Boundary Knowledge Work which can be seen as a new member of the HERO U framework.

The Landscape of Activity Theory

Activity Theory or the “Cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT)” is an interdisciplinary philosophical framework for studying both individual and social aspects of…