Mass Movements in Computer-Mediated Environments

An account of crowds as socio-material densities

Bibliographic Data

ID20508338
AuthorsJ Olofsson (0000-0002-9316-3372, Luleå University of Technology, corresponding author), Jennie Kristina Olofsson
Year2010
Volume13
Issue5
Pages765-784
Publication date2010-08-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueInformation Communication & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1369-118X • E-ISSN: 1468-4462
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/13691180903521539
OpenAlexW1849409660
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited12

Human crowds and embodied densities assume important parts in everyday life. In as much as we constitute different formations – demonstrations, traffic jams and concerts – cinematic productions, computer games and other virtual settings invite us to observe mass movements. Unfortunately, the spatial implication of crowds has not been subjected to contemporary academic research. Critical accounts of digitalization techniques and computer-mediated environments have likewise sidestepped further discussions; meticulous attention has been directed to the roles of gender and embodiment in relation to computer-mediated environments, but further scrutiny on mass movements and their entanglement with space largely lies fallow. Computer-mediated inhabitation of space contributes to reconceptualizing, not only the very notion of spatial constraints, but also earlier crowd theories, which admittedly serves to bring forth novel tenets. Scrutiny of the latter reveals a discipline, to a large extent produced according to, and in tandem with, male Western values, which have implicitly subjugated alternative aspects. At the same time, and in line with one of the premises of the iCS Key Thinkers series, this article argues that there is a range of thinkers and theoretical traditions that have a lot to offer theory and research into issues about newer media and information and communication technologies (http://www.tandf.co.uk/-journals/cfp/ricscfp.pdf 2009-12-17). Saying this, the article engages with crowds and how mass formations are enacted and articulated in computer-mediated settings. At the same time, it constitutes a research summary of earlier crowd theories. The intention is to enmesh traditional inquiries within crowd theories with a theoretical bedrock of cybercultural studies and feminist theories. In doing so, new light will confidently be shed upon the crowd as a socio-material density

Human–computer interaction · Computer Science · Data Visualization and Analytics · Digital Games and Media · Evacuation and Crowd Dynamics

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