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Theorizing IT

Theorizing IT. Eric Monteiro NTNU and Univ. i Oslo 460 Spring 2003. ”One-way traffic”. ’everything imported’ … Technology traditionally second order citizen … or rather incorporated already Ex.: Phenomenology (structure of expectations)

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Theorizing IT

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  1. Theorizing IT Eric Monteiro NTNU and Univ. i Oslo 460 Spring 2003

  2. ”One-way traffic” • ’everything imported’ … • Technology traditionally second order citizen • … or rather incorporated already • Ex.: Phenomenology (structure of expectations) • Ex.: Structuration theory (Orlikowski =/= Walsham)

  3. The contiunuum Social determ. Tech. determ Causal Ed Moses User centered Tailorability End-user computing ’participation’ …

  4. The contiunuum ”Contradictory” Dan Robey Social determ. Tech. determ Causal Ed Moses User centered Tailorability End-user computing ’participation’ …

  5. The Foucaultian heritage structural mechanisms

  6. The Foucaultian heritage ’performative’ ’productive’ Actually achieved …. Process orieneted structural mechanisms Ex.: - Portugues vessels / long distance control - Panopticon - New Public Management, auditing

  7. ’Mechanisms’ – a few issues • supporting vs. transforming action • M Berg’s critique of CSCW • Bowker & Star’s ’convergence’ (ex. Kodak) • intended vs. unintended outcomes • control • ”the slight surprise of action” • producer vs. consumer • inscription • in isolation vs. concerted • network • descriptive vs. political • ”politics by other means”

  8. IT: ”The problem, too often” ”stable” ”discrete” ”independent” ”fixed” ”monolithic”

  9. State-of-the-art (a la Orlikowski) Ensemble - network Proxy - characteristics Tool - black-boxed, stable Computational - algorithmic Nominal - generic

  10. …more… • ”stable” - ongoing/provisional/performed • Ex.: wanda’s help desk • ”discrete” - network/alliances/alignment • Ex.: integration of electronic patient record systems • ”independent” - irreversibility • Ex.: installed base • ”fixed” - unplanned, drifting, improvisation • Ex.: sinking plattforms • ”monolithic” - never only one network • Ex.: mobile phones + internet

  11. ANT • With fidelity, clearly a candidate • Strategicly formated argument by Wanda O • Fidelity, but how … ? • Method gone mad • The rational man • Drift, improvisation and all that • Politics

  12. 1. Sense-making • ANT encourages excessive bureacracy • Endless enumerations of components • Networks are never-ending • The fundamental principle of hermeneutics … ? • Klein & Myers, MISQ 1999 • Relevance ?

  13. 2. Rationality • Crudely : ANT is goal-directed (agendas, interests, translations) • Response • ”always overtaken by action” (Pandora) • Last decade, more projects and less ethographies • Symbolic aspects • ’culture’

  14. 3. Drift etc. • Projects always drift (Claudio) • … but what then ? • Structure to drift – or anything goes ? • Relevance to practioners • Analytically problematic

  15. 4. Politics • Critique : purely descriptive (L Winner) • Response • The politics of mechanisms • ’Politics by other means’ • Increasingly hollow ?

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