Conclusion of the Study. A naturalistic inquiry into the collaboratory. Document Traditional dissertation format suitable for print. Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Many different influences impinge on the creation of knowledge.
Objective knowledge is derived from an external object, is measured by the reliability of predictions to which it leads, and is judged by the criteria of distinctiveness, invariance, and controllability. Subjective knowledge is the measure of ease with which knowledge is individually accepted, and is judged by individual utility, coherence, complexity, and novelty. This study explores the information environment of the collaboratory from each of these perspectives, in linear sequence. Phase One determines that the collaboratory literature reflects a relatively equal contribution from the hard and soft sciences, and that theoretically, the collaboratory, as an environment, is inherently interdisciplinary and ungendered. Phase Two constructs a subjective reality of the collaboratory based on prolonged immersion in the online environment.