An actor-network theory perspective of online banking in Australia

Griffith Health, School of Human Services and Social WorkNo Full Tex

Using mixed methods to track the growth of the Web: tracing open government data initiatives

In recent years, there have been a rising number of Open Government Data (OGD) initiatives; a political, social and technical movement armed with a common goal of publishing government data in open, re-usable formats in order to improve citizen-to-government transparency, efficiency, and democracy. As a sign of commitment, the Open Government Partnership was formed, comprising of a collection of countries striving to achieve OGD. Since its initial launch, the number of countries committed to adopting an Open Government Data agenda has grown to more than 50; including countries from South America to the Far East.Current approaches to understanding Web initiatives such as OGD are still being developed. Methodologies grounded in multidisciplinarity are still yet to be achieved; typically research follows a social or technological approach underpinned by quantitative or qualitative methods, and rarely combining the two into a single analytical framework. In this paper, a mixed methods approach will be introduced, which uses qualitative data underpinned by sociological theory to complement a quantitative analysis using computer science techniques. This method aims to provide an alternative approach to understanding the socio-technical activities of the Web. To demonstrate this, the activities of the UK Open Government Data initiative will be explored using a range of quantitative and qualitative data, examining the activities of the community, to provide a rich analysis of the formation and development of the UK OGD community

The internet, E-commerce and older people: an actor-network approach to researching reasons for adoption and use

Many older people are discovering the Internet, and some are also making good use of electronic commerce and all that goes with it. Others, however, are not adopting these technologies. This paper questions why some older people adopt Internet technologies while others do not, and offers a research framework, based on actor-network theory, for investigating adoption of Internet technologies by older people. In this paper, innovation translation is used to illustrate how specific cases of adoption have occurred. Innovation translation presents a different view of innovation than the better known theory of innovation diffusion, but one that the authors argue is better suited for research in socio-technical situations like this

Strategic Niche Management (SNM) beyond sustainability. An exploration of key findings of SNM through the lens of ICT and privacy

Recently the governance of socio-technical transitions to sustainability is gaining attention in the field of innovation studies. One particular approach is that of Strategic Niche Management (SNM), which advocates the creation of protected space to experiment with radically new sustainable socio-technical practices. This paper contributes by asking whether this approach is also useful for analysis and governance of other types of socially desirable change. This question is addressed through a review of six key-findings of Strategic Niche Management and an original case study in the field of Near Field Communication (NFC) technologies for mobile payment. The social value at stake in this case is not sustainability but privacy. We draw three main conclusions. First, we find that the key-findings and concepts in SNM for sustainability are helpful to understand and interpret much of the data collected for the NFC case and privacy. However, there are notable differences in each of the key-findings, i.e findings related to a) the local-global distinction in SNM, b) expectations, c) social networks, d) learning, e) protection, and f) niche-regime interactions. Second, in relation to governance, the role of sustainability values (being a promising value to pursue) and privacy values (being a bottom-line value to defend) are notably different. Third, these differences result in different roles of public bodies in niche development. The paper ends with discussing the consequences for SNM for sustainability research and future research topics.Strategic Niche Management, sustainability, NFC, mobile payment, privacy

How Information System Investment Evaluation Being Initiated: An Actor Network Theory Perspective

Determining whether investments in information technology (IT) have an impact on firm performance has been and continues to be a major problem for information systems researchers and practitioners. To better understand the often far-reaching implications associated with technology investment and interrelated IS evaluation, this study follows actor-network theory (ANT) as a lens and interpretive case study as a methodology to understand how Information System investment ideas being initiated in the developing country context of Jordan.The purpose of applying ANT is to produce an initial functional outline of the different actors—human, nonhuman, technical, social and cultural—that interact in the actor network. With respect to IS investment, examination of the interactions surrounding the idea of IS investment will provide information on many important issues and on the relationships between human and nonhuman actors. This paper seeks to make a contribution through exploring IS system idea initiations from the perspective of actor-network theory. In addressing the above issues the study serves an important objective which is to provide valuable insights regarding the way that investments ideas are initiated, which is currently lacking in both the information systems and the management literature. Keywords: actor-network theory, Information systems, Information technology, IS investment, IS Evaluatio

The use and Usefulness of Actor‐Network Theory as a Basis for Social Research: A Consideration of Some Recent Publications

Abstract: The use of actor‐network theory (ANT) in social research has grown significantly in recent years. The ANT approach has been applied in fields as diverse as information systems development, media studies, accounting, education, geography, and development studies. With any new research approach that is 'trending', it is reasonable to ask how devoted the new followers are to the spirit and letter of the new theory, but in this case the nature of ANT makes the question particularly difficult. The founders and early proponents seem to agree that ANT is not really a theory; perhaps it is a method for studying historical phenomena or socio‐technical systems; perhaps it is a new style of practice‐based theorising; perhaps it is a loose collection of approaches based on a particular philosophical position concerning ontology and epistemology. This looseness of definition, while not surprising for a recent movement, makes it difficult to judge whether and when ANT is being used 'properly'. In this paper I attempt to clarify this question by examining a selection of recent publications that claim to have used ANT in their research. Most of these publications are based on case studies, although pedagogical and theoretical articles are also considered. I briefly mention some key aspects of ANT, then take a considerable sample of articles made available over the last three years and consider how many aspects of ANT they have used as the basis of their research and, in some cases how the authors have attempted to modify or extend ANT, or to combine it with other theories. I conclude by speculating on why some authors might be attracted to ANT even though they do not 'really' believe in it and why this is not necessarily a bad thing. I also suggest possible signs of 'good' ANT research. This paper is intended for those who have already developed some intention to use ANT in their research, but would like to see further examples of how this can be done. Further examples and explanation can be found in Underwood (2008) and Latour (1996)

Mobile Money Affordances: Enabling the Way for Financial Inclusion

This study explores how mobile technology provides an effective means of increasing financial access and bringing socioeconomic benefits to the country. We examine the potentials of mobile money in increasing financial inclusion in the developing countries at the macro (ecosystem) level using the case of Wave Money FinTech in Myanmar. We adopt Pozzi’s affordance actualization framework and use multiple data collection methods to explain the key mechanisms by which different stakeholders perceive and actualize mobile-money affordances. The findings demonstrated that realization of technology affordance was different from different user group due to different intention of technology use in the specific context, however it contributed to the ultimate outcome of financial inclusion. We hope that this research provides academia and practitioners with new insights into unlocking the revolutionary potential of mobile technologies in the developing world. Keywords: Technology Adoption, Mobile-Money Affordances, Financial Inclusion, Developing Countries, Case Study Researc

From spectator to walk-on to actor: An exploratory study of the internationalisation of Greek firms since 1989

The article follows the evolution of the Greek business activities in foreign countries. Based on two unique databases, the article acknowledges the existence of two sub-periods. More particularly, the years up to 1998 are characterized by two central elements, whose importance diminishes during the second period: the overwhelming significance of the Balkans (especially the countries bordering on Greece) and the hesitance of large Greek firms. In the second period, large firms make a dynamic entry, while some of them start behaving as real TNCs. However, the importance of small firms but also of the Balkans is preserved. As anticipated, with the shift of the morphological features of Greek entrepreneurial activity in foreign countries, the impact on the Greek economy also changes.Greece, Delocalization, Outsourcing, FDI

Information Technology Platforms: Definition and Research Directions

The concept of an information technology (IT) related platform is broad and covers phenomena ranging from the operating system Linux to the Internet. Such platforms are of increasing importance to innovation and value creation across many facets of industry and daily life. There is, however, a lack of common understanding in both research and industry about what is mean by the term platform when related to IT. This lack of consensus is detrimental to research and knowledge development. Thus, the aims of this study are to: (i) provide a sound definition of the IT-platform concept by identifying its distinguishing dimensions; and (ii) identify important current research directions for the IT-platform concept. To achieve these aims a systematic literature review was undertaken with 133 relevant articles taken from major information systems journals, conferences, and business publications. The study contributes by providing a sound base for future research into IT-platforms.Comment: Research-in-progress ISBN# 978-0-646-95337-3 Presented at the Australasian Conference on Information Systems 2015 (arXiv:1605.01032