Analyzing Change.1 October
21, 2002
Overview of lecture:
1. Review of premises of course (from 1st lecture):
2. Overview of how to study “change’
(see Perrolle’s text)
3. Specific theories:
- Sproull’s and Kiesler’s approach
(as sociologists) –look at “second-level effects”
- economists’ approach – look at “first-level
effects”
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1. Premises of course:
Study “technologies” (primarily
computers) and their uses to gather /store / retrieve / archive
/ generate / etc. information within an historical
context
Study technics within their social
context : focus on the EFFECTS they cause on individual users
and society and natural environment:
- Concerned with changes to capabilities of the
technics* but more concerned with how these have CHANGED us
(our personal capabilities**) + CHANGED our economic, social,
legal*** and political systems
· for example, changes of searching capabilities
form print-based text to searching capabilities on the Web
** for example, because we moved from oral culture to literate
culture we started to think differently
*** for example, shifting ideas about copyright.
Generally HOW* have various social scientists
analyzed the effects of technology X (in our case information
technologies)
and
WHAT have they found?
2. Develop a theory and then devise ways to test
their theory
See Perrolle (chapter 2 “Social Change”)
Theory |
Induction |
Deduction |
Empirical Generalizations |
Hypotheses |
Analysis |
Operationalization |
Observations of the World |
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(from Perrolle, Figure 2.1 and Section 2.1.1.)
Theories depend on “paradigms” --
ways to view the world. Perrolle suggests 3 social science paradigms
to develop theories:
Functionalism (macro level):
- argue that societies evolve in their ability
to deal with the world
- Conflict theory (macro level)
- “conflict is the source of social change”,
- “understand the computer in terms of power, social classes,
and inter-group conflict.”
- Symbolic Interactionism (micro-level perspective)
–
- look at social interaction between individuals and in groups
3. Specific Theories: Sproull and Kiesler
Sproull and Kiesler- they discount analyses of “first
level effects”
1. First-Level Effects--implicit beliefs:
1. That there are simple causes and effects:
use latest technology** --> improve efficiency
and productivity
improve efficiency and productivity -->increase
profits
**Moore’s Law: computer power available
on a chip doubles every 18 months..[implications of built-in
obsolescence (remember “Future” film?)]
2. That you can accurately measure this gain in
quantifiable terms... How?
with cost-displacement analysis - (see page 3
of kit)
with value-added analysis - (page 3)
Some of the problems with “efficiency”
measurements
HIDDEN COSTS:
--> not taking into account the cost of employee
training (cost of equipment is included in calculations but
little else)
-->the real costs of implementing the technology
have not all been accounted for (e.g., Year 2000 problem. “government
tab for century date change could reach 30$ billion..)
Time lost (loss of efficiency):
--> IF there is no/little training and you
have to ask workers, or read manuals
--> If we’re frustrated when we encounter
“bugs” in software and reach the limits of hardware
--> IF we spend more time re-doing work if
we lose data
-> IF (when) we suffer stress when we have
escalation of expectations of our abilities (adding new programs
to our set of skills)--same amount of time--more work
Even if you COULD measure accurately all costs,
this approach doesn’t recognize:
--> that technology isn’t always used
to lower costs, but to improve quality of service (e.g., ATMs)
--> the value of the old technology that was
replaced (see S and K, page 4)
But the real reason to downplay the first-level
effects is that the more important deviation-amplifying
changes are happening to the social system (second- level effects
on the users)
Sproull and Kiesler’s conclusions about the 2nd-level
effects on communication technologies:
--> people pay attention to different things
--> have contact with different people
--> depend on one another differently
2. Examples of Second-level Effects
Example of typewriter:
1st level effect: to produce letters efficiently
that looked like those from a printing press.
2nd level effects:
the typewriter changed the office—with increased
paperwork needed more workers;
female clerics replaced male clerics;
lines emerged between male bosses and female clerics/secretaries
2nd-level (Qualitative) changes to :
interpersonal relationships,
about what is important in an office,
work procedures.
2nd example - ARPANET:
1st level effect: shared use of resources on large
computers for scientists.
2nd level effects: networking allowed for the
electronic mail to emerge as the most popular feature of ARPANET.
2nd-level (Qualitative) changes to:
interpersonal relationships;
way research was carried out.
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