Social Perspectives on Semantic Interoperability

Constraints on Geographical Knowledge from a Data Perspective

Bibliographic Data

ID14702009
AuthorsNadine Schuurman (0000-0003-1362-224X, Simon Fraser University, corresponding author)
Year2005
Volume40
Issue4
Pages47-61
Publication date2005-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueCartographica The International Journal for Geographic Information and Geovisualization (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0317-7173 • E-ISSN: 1911-9925
PublisherUniversity of Toronto Press Inc. (UTPress) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.3138/9643-114r-7787-5253
OpenAlexW2163509310
LanguageEN
Citations received18
References cited65

Much attention has been paid by government agencies and GIS researchers to standardization of data and interoperability of systems. Many of these efforts, however, have focused narrowly on technical hurdles while ignoring the social and political contexts that influence interoperability decisions. This article illustrates how social factors influence interoperability along three axes: classification, ontologies of data models, and government policy. Extant research approaches to interoperability of GIS are discussed and their strengths and weaknesses assessed. The article begins with definitions of what interoperability is, why it is important to academic users and policy makers, and its influence on geographical knowledge in a digital age. Exploration of social influences, as an alternative analytical approach to interoperability, begins with a discussion of the roles of classification and scale. The dangers of maintaining inflexible ontologies associated with specific data models are illustrated as a technical limitation with profound social implications for the construction of knowledge. Finally, policy at the multiple levels of governance with respect to interoperability is explored as an infrastructural constraint – and a diminishing influence

Cross-domain interoperability · Data science · Epistemology · Extant taxon · Government (linguistics · Interoperability · Knowledge management · Management science · Perspective (graphical · Semantic interoperability · Standardization · Strengths and weaknesses · World Wide Web · Computer Science · Data Management and Algorithms · Engineering · Geographic Information Systems Studies · Semantic Web and Ontologies

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