Andrea Tapia

Biographical Information

Dr. Tapia is an academic with expertise in social research methods and social theory, applying those to the study of information and communication technologies (ICT) and their context of development, implementation and use.

Dr. Tapia’s work has been funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Defense, the United Nations, and Penn State's Schreyer Honors College.

Research and Teaching

Dr. Tapia’s guiding research question is “What is the role that technology plays in institutional patterns of power, hierarchy, governance, domination and resistance?” The institutions on which Dr. Tapia’s research gaze has fallen all have been in the public sector. She is essentially interested in government, education, humanitarian relief, community organizations and non-profits, emergency responders and military, and groups engaged in collective action or social movements.

Dr. Tapia’s research goals are (1) to theorize on the relationship between social and public institutions and information and communications technologies, (2) to extend current methodologies measures of the effectiveness of technological and social interventions in public institutional spaces, (3) to test theories and methodologies through the development, implementation and evaluation of intervention programs, and (4) to draw on this scientific understanding to provide recommendations for public policy and community-based initiatives that take into account the issues confronting institutions in the information age.

Publications:

Selected Journal Articles:

Maldonado, E.; Ngamassi Tchouakeu, L.; Maitland, C.; Tapia, A., (2009), “Collaborative Systems Development in Disaster Relief: The Impact of Multi-Level Governance.” Information Systems Frontiers.

Tapia, A. and Maitland, C., (2009), “The Data Collection Imperative: The Implications of Wireless Device Use For Humanitarian Accountability.” Information, Communication and Society. Vol. 12 No. 4

Tapia, A and Maldonado, E, (2009) "An ICT Skills Cascade: Government-Mandated Open Source Policy as a Potential Driver for ICT Skills Transfer." Information Technology for International Development. Vol. 5.

Sawyer, S., and Tapia, A. (2007). “From Findings to Theories: Institutionalizing Social Informatics.” The Information Society, Vol. 23, No. 4, Pages 263-275.

Tapia, A., (2006) “Hostile Work Environment.Com: Increasing Participation of Underrepresented Groups, Lessons Learned from the Dot-Com Era.” Database for Information Systems Research. Vol. 37, no.4, pages 79-98.

Sawyer, S. and Tapia, A. (2006) “Always Articulating: Theorizing on Using Information and Communication Technologies," The Information Society, Volume 22, No. 5, pages 311-324.

Tapia, A., (2004), “The Power of Myth in the IT Workplace: Creating a 24-Hour Workday During the Dot-Com Bubble,” Information Technology and People, Vol. 17(3), pages 303-326.

Sawyer, S., Tapia, A., Pesheck, L., and Davenport J. (2004), “Observations on Mobility and the First Responder,” Communications of the ACM, 47(2), Pages 62-65.

Tapia, A., (2003), “Technomillennialism: Y2K: A Subcultural Response to a Technological Threat,” Science Technology and Human Values, Sage Publications. Vol. 28 (3), pages 483-512.

Tapia, A., (2002). “Techno-Armageddon: The Millennial Christian Response to Y2K,” Journal of the Study of Religious Research Vol. 43(3), page 266-286.

Selected Conference Proceedings:

 Maitland, C., Ngamassi, L., & Tapia, A. (2009) “Information Management and Technology Issues Addressed by Humanitarian Relief Coordination Bodies,” Published in the Proceedings of the ISCRAM2009, International Community on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. May 10-13 2009. Göteborg, Sweden.

VanGorp, A., Tchouakeu, L.M.N., Maitland, C. and Tapia, A. (2008). “VSAT Deployment for Post-Disaster Relief and Development: Opportunities and Constraints for Inter-Organizational Coordination among International NGOs.” Published in the Proceedings of the International Telecommunications Society, Montreal, Canada, June 24-27, 2008.

Tapia, A. and Ortiz, J. (2008) “Bandwithing Together: The Public Policy Process Generating Municipal Wireless Broadband Networks.” Published in the Proceedings of the IFIP: International Federation of Information Professionals WG 8.2, August 11-14, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Maldonado, E and Tapia, A. (2008) “Mandatory Open Source Policy: The Case Study of Venezuela.” Published in the Proceedings of the IFIP International Federation of Information Professionals WG 8.2, August 11-14, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Maldonado, E. and Tapia, A., (2007)“Government-Mandated Open Source Development: The Case Study of Venezuela,” Published in the Proceedings of the Telecommunication Policy Research Conference, Washington, D.C., September 28-30, 2007.

Tapia, A. and Ortiz, J., (2007) “Policy and Plan Convergence for Municipal Broadband Networks,” Published in the Proceedings of the Telecommunication Policy Research Conference, Washington, D.C., September 28-30, 2007.

Tapia, A., Seif El-Nasr, M., Yucel, I., Zupko, J., and Maldonado, E., (2007) “Building Virtual Spaces: Games as Gatekeepers for the IT Workforce,” Published in the Proceedings of the International Federation of Information Professionals (IFIP) Working Group 8.2/9.5 , Portland, Oregon. July 2007.

Maldonado, E. and Tapia, A. (2007) “National Information Technology Policy in a Globalized World: Building an IT Workforce for Venezuela,” Published in the Proceedings of the Applied Computing Machinery, Special Interest Group, Management of Information Systems and Computer Professional Research (ACM SIG MIS/CPR), St. Louis, MO, April 2007.

Tapia, A. and Ortiz, J., (2006) “Municipal Responses to State-Level Broadband Internet Policy,” Published in the Proceedings of the Telecommunication Policy Research Conference, Washington, D.C., September 30-October 2, 2006.

Ortiz, J. and Tapia, A., (2006) “Deploying for Deliverance: The Digital Divide Discourse in Municipal Wireless Networks,” Published in the Proceedings of the American Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS), Acapulco, Mexico, August 2006.