The politics of constructing health data spaces: Border work and the stickiness of fragmentation
This article explores the construction of health data spaces through the lens of border work. It provides insights into the complex attachments and detachments that come to the fore when establishing centralized health data access bodies in the Nordic countries. By comparing Denmark, Norway, and Fin...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SAGE Publishing
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Big Data & Society |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/20539517251320012 |
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| _version_ | 1850038138021347328 |
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| author | Heidrun Åm Lotte Groth Jensen Rasmus Mølgaard Hansen Karoliina Snell Heta Tarkkala Aaro Tupasela |
| author_facet | Heidrun Åm Lotte Groth Jensen Rasmus Mølgaard Hansen Karoliina Snell Heta Tarkkala Aaro Tupasela |
| author_sort | Heidrun Åm |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article explores the construction of health data spaces through the lens of border work. It provides insights into the complex attachments and detachments that come to the fore when establishing centralized health data access bodies in the Nordic countries. By comparing Denmark, Norway, and Finland, the study unveils a variety of border work practices. These practices include the complex interplay between national infrastructures, local practices, and regulatory frameworks, the management of continuous attachments through additional loops, and negotiations over public-private borders. The study shows that, despite policy goals envisioning health data access bodies as seamless one-stop shops for ‘detached’ data, the data remains attached to places, institutions, people, and countries. Consequently, new data spaces tend to emerge and co-exist with existing ones. Our analysis of the Nordic experiences offers valuable lessons and critical insights for ongoing efforts to build a European Health Data Space. We further suggest that this stickiness of fragmentation might be a common feature of big data policy efforts. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9a4d0fd264c948909c3062a7172ae1fe |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2053-9517 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Big Data & Society |
| spelling | doaj-art-9a4d0fd264c948909c3062a7172ae1fe2025-08-20T02:56:39ZengSAGE PublishingBig Data & Society2053-95172025-03-011210.1177/20539517251320012The politics of constructing health data spaces: Border work and the stickiness of fragmentationHeidrun Åm0Lotte Groth Jensen1Rasmus Mølgaard Hansen2Karoliina Snell3Heta Tarkkala4Aaro Tupasela5 , Trondheim, Norway , Aarhus, Denmark , Aarhus, Denmark , Helsinki, Finland , Helsinki, Finland , Helsinki, FinlandThis article explores the construction of health data spaces through the lens of border work. It provides insights into the complex attachments and detachments that come to the fore when establishing centralized health data access bodies in the Nordic countries. By comparing Denmark, Norway, and Finland, the study unveils a variety of border work practices. These practices include the complex interplay between national infrastructures, local practices, and regulatory frameworks, the management of continuous attachments through additional loops, and negotiations over public-private borders. The study shows that, despite policy goals envisioning health data access bodies as seamless one-stop shops for ‘detached’ data, the data remains attached to places, institutions, people, and countries. Consequently, new data spaces tend to emerge and co-exist with existing ones. Our analysis of the Nordic experiences offers valuable lessons and critical insights for ongoing efforts to build a European Health Data Space. We further suggest that this stickiness of fragmentation might be a common feature of big data policy efforts.https://doi.org/10.1177/20539517251320012 |
| spellingShingle | Heidrun Åm Lotte Groth Jensen Rasmus Mølgaard Hansen Karoliina Snell Heta Tarkkala Aaro Tupasela The politics of constructing health data spaces: Border work and the stickiness of fragmentation Big Data & Society |
| title | The politics of constructing health data spaces: Border work and the stickiness of fragmentation |
| title_full | The politics of constructing health data spaces: Border work and the stickiness of fragmentation |
| title_fullStr | The politics of constructing health data spaces: Border work and the stickiness of fragmentation |
| title_full_unstemmed | The politics of constructing health data spaces: Border work and the stickiness of fragmentation |
| title_short | The politics of constructing health data spaces: Border work and the stickiness of fragmentation |
| title_sort | politics of constructing health data spaces border work and the stickiness of fragmentation |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/20539517251320012 |
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