Cathy’s doctoral research explores how we can realise the collective value of data. Working at the intersection of theories of value and power, and public service practice, she unpacks what collective value looks like and how it can be systematically created. Drawing on Deleuze and Guattari’s assemblage theory, Cathy interrogates how we think and talk about data, develops a novel collective theory of value and power, and applies that theory to practice. Cathy hopes this work will support the public sector policy and data communities to design, create, and facilitate supported data assemblages that create collective value. While data is now seen as an asset and source of value creation, in attempting to realise value, it is possible to get it scandalously wrong, inadvertently causing harm, and damaging reputations and trust. While technocratic solutions may appear attractive, across economics, public administration theory, and theories of evidence-based policy, linear-mechanistic logics have been shown to undermine value creation in complex problem spaces. We do not yet know how to govern complexity to create collective value. Cathy proposes two sources for this low capacity to govern complexity and the attractiveness of linear mechanistic logics. She also proposes a solution.

The first source is a lack of clarity about what value is. It is challenging to consistently realise value unless you know what it looks like and our current theories of value creation are an inadequate guide. The second source is the primary focus in power theory on power’s negative exercise, neglecting its positive exercise. Cathy argues that we cannot effectively combat negative exercises of power—that is domination—unless we are able to articulate an alternative, coherently and concisely. Cathy argues that these two areas of theoretical ambiguity point to the solution; value is inextricably linked to power. She will present a novel combined theory of value and power underpinned by Deleuze and Guattari’s assemblage theory (which is informed by complexity science). That is, value is the enhanced capacity to act to achieve outcomes (i.e. the base definition of power) we seek from all social relationships. The value produced in these social assemblages can be hoarded (power-over) or shared (power-with) amongst all participants. In the short term, taking all the value for yourself—power over or governing-over—can be profitable. In the long-term, it undermines individual and collective value creation and flourishing; that requires value sharing and governing with. Cathy combines insights from theory and case studies from Australian governments’ data policies and programs to demonstrate what governing-with data—rather than governing-over—looks like in practice and to elucidate its key features.

For more information, Cathy has published her thesis chapters as pre-print working papers. See: https://crawford.anu.edu.au/people/phd/cathy-fussell

Speaker biography Cathy is a Sir Roland Wilson PhD Scholar from the Crawford School of Public Policy and the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. Cathy joined the Australian Public Service in 2001. She has since had a broad range of policy and program roles within the health portfolio. Cathy’s recent work has focused on big data strategy and capability. She co-led the establishment of the Social Health and Welfare Analytic Unit and led Health’s cross-portfolio engagement on big data analytics projects through the Data Integration Partnership for Australia.

Primary supervisor and panel chair: Professor Helen Sullivan

Panel members: Professor Kathryn Henne and Professor Katherine Daniell