Predictive policing is presented as a prime example of associative practices. Association is an information practice that emerges in different societal fields, which underlines the importance of its critical discussion. The presentation first advances a methodology for studying the materiality and liveliness of information. Drawing on empirical material, the life cycle of information is deployed to illustrate how police predictions come about and how associative police practices make information matter. Finally, it is considered what it means to make matter and how we can make differently. In doing so, the talk summarizes selected arguments of Kaufmann’s new book Making Information Matter.
Mareile Kaufmann’s background is in Criminology and Cultural Studies. She is a professor at the Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law, University of Oslo with a research focus on data practices. She works with qualitative research designs that combine theory with innovative angles and strong empirical components. For her work she was allowed to collaborate with intelligence officers, state officials,forensic scientists, software developers, hackers, artists and children. She was awarded several grants and prizes, amongst which is the ERC-funded project Digital DNA and the University of Oslo's annual Award for Young Researchers.