Theoretical and practical implications from the use of structuration theory in public sector information systems research

• To gain better understanding of the development, implementation and use of information technology(IT), many scholars in the field of information systems (IS) use structuration theory (ST). However, STis, so far, more seldom applied to, and reflected upon, in studies of public sector IS to account for(unexpected) outcomes of IT development and implementation. This paper creates an overview of theuse of ST in studies on public sector IT in order to identify theoretical and practical implications forthe digital public sector. Most (ten out of twelve) papers in this field apply ST to empirical studies,while three papers were found to adapt ST to fit public sector settings, and none were found tocritically address ST. While ST as a lens for studying public sector IT was thus seen to have practicalusefulness, theoretical usefulness is still underdeveloped regarding theory adaption andcontextualization. Based on this study we argue that there is a need to further investigate the risksassociated with the transfer to the public sector as it is important to achieve conscious adaptation anduse of ST in public sector IS in order to progress with using ST in that context.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Medie- och kommunikationsvetenskap -- Systemvetenskap, informationssystem och informatik med samhällsvetenskaplig inriktning (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Media and Communications -- Information Systems, Social aspects (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Structuration Theory

Public Sector

Digital Government

Information Systems

Publikations- och innehållstyp

ref (ämneskategori)

kon (ämneskategori)