Robin Williams (born 13 November 1952 in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
) is a Professor of Social Research on Technology at the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
, Scotland, and director of the
Institute for the Study of Science, Technology and Innovation
The Institute for the Study of Science, Technology and Innovation (ISSTI) is an interdisciplinary research centre based in the UK. The research network was established in 2001 to bring together groups of academics and individual researchers acro ...
. He is an interdisciplinary researcher in the field of Science and Technology Studies and contributed much to the
social shaping of technology
According to Robin A. Williams and David Edge (1996), "Central to social shaping of technology (SST) is the concept that there are choices (though not necessarily conscious choices) inherent in both the design of individual artifacts and systems, ...
by studying the interplay between 'social' and 'technical' factors in the design and implementation of a range of technologies.
Biography
After studying Natural Sciences and Social and Political Science at
Clare College, Cambridge
Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. It was refounded ...
, Robin Williams took an MSc and PhD at
Aston University
Aston University (abbreviated as ''Aston''. for post-nominals) is a public research university situated in the city centre of Birmingham, England. Aston began as the Birmingham Municipal Technical School in 1895, evolving into the UK's first c ...
and worked as research fellow in the Technology Policy Unit until 1986. He then joined the Research Centre for Social Sciences (RCSS) at the University of Edinburgh and coordinated the Edinburgh PICT Centre, one of the six university research centres established under the ESRC Programme on Information and Communications Technologies (1986 - 1995). During this time Robin Williams and other researchers in Edinburgh PICT Centre published on issues regarding social, economic and political aspects of the design and implementation of technology. Concluding the findings of a decade's research Robin Williams and David Edge published a notable paper on the ‘broad church’ of
social shaping of technology
According to Robin A. Williams and David Edge (1996), "Central to social shaping of technology (SST) is the concept that there are choices (though not necessarily conscious choices) inherent in both the design of individual artifacts and systems, ...
. He became director of RCSS in 1997.
In 2000 Robin Williams established the
Institute for the Study of Science, Technology and Innovation
The Institute for the Study of Science, Technology and Innovation (ISSTI) is an interdisciplinary research centre based in the UK. The research network was established in 2001 to bring together groups of academics and individual researchers acro ...
(ISSTI) to bring together groups of academics and individual researchers across the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
who are involved in research, teaching and knowledge transfer on social and policy aspects of science, technology and innovation. He was co-director of ESRC Innogen Centre from 2002-2012. In 2008 he arranged the merger of RCSS and the Science Studies Unit to form the Science, Technology and Innovation Studies subject group in the
University of Edinburgh School of Social and Political Science
The School of Social and Political Science (SSPS) at the University of Edinburgh is a unit within the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. Its constituent departments (called 'subject areas' in Edinburgh) conduct research and teaching ...
.
Professor Williams established institutional links to and between research centres and institutions throughout the UK, Europe and Asia. His various involvements included co-chairing the UK Association for Studies in Innovation Science and Technology (AsSIST), being representative of Britain on the COST A4 European Research Collaboration initiative on the Social Shaping of Technology and coordinator of the China-EU Information Technology Standards Research Project (2008-2010).
Books
* How Industry Analysts Shape the Digital Future (2016),Oxford University Press, with Neil Pollock.
* Software and Organisations: The Biography of the Enterprise-Wide System - Or how SAP Conquered the World (2009), Routledge, with Neil Pollock
* Social Learning in Technological Innovation: Experimenting with Information and Communication Technologies, (2005), Edward Elgar, with James Stewart and Roger Slack.
* Shaping Technology, Guiding Policy: Concepts, Spaces and Tools, (2002) Edward Elgar, co-edited with Knut H. Sørensen
* Policies for Cleaner Technology: A New Agenda for Government and Industry (1999), Earthscan, with Antony Clayton and Graham Spinardi.
* Exploring Expertise, (1998) Macmillan, co-edited with Wendy Faulkner and Jamie Fleck,
* The Social Shaping of Information Superhighways: European and American Roads to the Information Society (1997), Campus Verlag, co-edited with Herbert Kubicek and William Dutton.
* Expertise and innovation: Information technology strategies in the financial services sector (1994), Clarendon Press, Oxford, with Fincham, Fleck, Proctor, Scarbrough and Tierney.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Robin
Living people
1952 births
Academics of the University of Edinburgh
Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge
Alumni of Aston University
Science and technology studies scholars
Philosophers of technology