CSCW Research Reconsidered: Some implications of "Participatory Design" for Information and Management

Abstract

Since Winograd and Flores' (1986) classical work, CSCW (Computer Supported Cooperative Work) researchers have rejected the "rationalistic orientation" of cognitive science, and attempted to replace it with the "practice perspective" of human cognition. However, an ethnographic or "descriptive" turn in CSCW research has concealed the normative dimension of CSCW research and limited the field's potential for a revision of our knowledge enterprise. By reconsidering the role of a researcher s intervention in organizational practices, the author reinterprets "Participatory Design" in CSCW research, and examines its implication on information systems management.