Of maps and scripts:The status of formal constructs in cooperative work

Abstract. The received understanding of the status of formal organizational constructs in cooperative work is problematic. The paper shows that the empirical evidence is not as strong as we may have believed and that there is evidence from other studies that contradicts what we may have taken for granted for years. This indicates that the role of formal con-structs is more differentiated than generally taken for granted. They not only serve as ‘maps ’ but also as ‘scripts’. of a different nature than presumed by the protagonists of office automation [e.g., 42; 45; 49]. The general conclusion of these studies were that such constructs, instead of determin-ing action causally, serve as ‘maps ’ which responsible and competent actors may consult to accomplish their work [8, p. 114; 43, p. 188 f.]. Thus, Lucy Suchman’s radical critique of cognitive science [43] and the ‘situated action ’ perspectiv

CSCW - Four Characters in Search of a Context

The title of this paper was chosen to highlight the fact that the label CSCW, although widely adopted as the acronym for the field of Computer Supported Cooperative Work, has been applied to computer applications of very different ilk. It is not at all clear what are the unique identifying elements of this research area. This paper provides a framework for approaching the issue of cooperative work and its possible computer support. The core issues are identified and prospects for the field are outlined

HERDING CATS: OR MODEL-BASED ALIGNMENT OF HETEROGENEOUS PRACTICES

This paper reports on a study of how practitioners in engineering design try to develop and use models of the design space of the enterprise in support of collaborative work within global production networks. The paper also examines the difficulties they face in developing these models

Assorted notes on the metaphysical notion of ‘sharing’

In CSCW, phrases such as ‘shared goal’ or ‘shared understanding’ are often used to denote what is taken to be a defining feature of cooperative work or at least what is thought to be an essential precondition of the orderliness without which cooperative work in practice is impossible; that is, these terms are used in an explanatory function [e.g., 1; 6]. To take but one example: In one of her articles on ‘situation awareness’ the muchcited Mica Endsley posits: ‘In a smoothly functioning team, each team member shares a common understanding of what is happening on those [Situation Awareness] elements that are common — that is, they have shared situation awareness, which refers to the overlap among the SA requirements of the team members.’ However, she prudently adds, ‘The concept of shared mental models is not universally heralded’ and ‘The development of shared mental models has not been the subject of much research’ [4, pp. 48, 52 f.]. A ‘shared situation awareness’? A ‘shared mental model’? What does she mean