Information is the medium for communication, power-play, politics, and the building block for knowledge systems. It is associated with social interaction, and can be mediated by technology use. The paper argues that the key to understanding the impact of future technologies lies in the interaction between the social and technical environment. It suggests that future technologies such as virtual reality make necessary a move away from traditional methods of systems analysis and design. The interactive nature of such technology requires a validation in the social environment. The paper proposes the creation of protocols (a set of universally applicable standards) for the virtual environment. It suggests that information systems are split into three protocols: physical, learning, and cultural protocols. Finally it illustrates that their influence over each other can be understood by applying structuration theor

Conkar, T

Kimble, C

English

Leeds Beckett Repository 

The Future of Information Systeims - Using Social Systems to Create 
Protocols for the Virtual Environment. 
(Systems Analysis tlhrough Social Analysis.) 
Chris Kimble 
+44 (0)1904 433380 
Tina Conkar 
+44 (0)1904 433243 
Department of Compul.er Science 
The University of York Heslington YO1 5DD UK 
Department of Computer Science 
The University of York Heslington YO1 5C)D UK 
Information is the medium for communication, power-play, politics, and the building block -for 
knowledge systems. It is associated with social interaction, and can be mediated by technology use. 
This paper argues that the key to understanding the impact @future lechnologies lies in the 
interaction between the social and technical environment. If suggests that future technologies silnch 
as Virtual Reality make necessary a move awa,y ,from traditional methods of systems analysis and 
design. The interactive nature of such technology requires a validation in the social enviro,nnzent. 
The paper proposes the creation of protocols ( a  set of universally applicable standards) .for the 
Virtual Environment. It suggests that Information Systems are split iivto three Protocols: Physictal, 
Learning, and Cultural Protocols. Finally it il'lustrates that their injliience over each other can be 
understood by applying Structuration Theory. 
Introduction 
"Because of its potential to change us as humans, as communities, as democracies, we 
need to try to understand the nature of CMC, cyberspace, and virtual communities in 
every important context - politically, economically, socially, cognitively". (R.heirigold, 
1995) 
The World Wide Web, the Internet, and technologies such as Virtual Realitys' , 
represent the future of Information Technology (IT); their interactive nature, make 
possible social contact across the boundaries of space and time. Daily, we hear of 
more new terms springing frorn this technology: 'Virtual Communities', 'Cyber Punks', 
and 'Surfing the Net'. New terrninologies for a new society. 
Virtual technologies are reminiscent of philosopher Baudrillard's "Simulacrum", a 
universal reality where the border between artefact and reality has vanished. As such 
these technologies require a nevv approach to understanding and building the systems 
needed to support, what is essentially, a new social phenomenon. 
Current analysis and design methods, based on specified logical and sequential 
processing, lack the flexibility amd dynamics for understanding this technology. This 
paper builds on social theory as a basis for developing a new systems and design 
methodology for such technologies. It argues that the key to achieving this lies in an 
understanding of the relevance of information in both the social, and the technical, 
system. 
Background: The business of virtual reality 
Tenbruck (Tenbruck, 1989) suggests that today's society is constantly in the process 
of "producing a new and partial reality" that forces people to keep up with the flow of 
cultural production. These new realities are the result of media manipulatioln and 
aggressive marketing of information that encourage people towards a consumer 
society. Virtual systems are being hailed as the new tool in the evolution of the 
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Managing Virtual Enterprises 1EM.C 96 Page 241 
modern business organisation and its associated information systems. 
This increased interest in new technology has resulted from a paradigm shift over the 
last two decades that has emphasised the use and manipulation of technology within 
the commercial environment. Sociologist Bruno Latour (Latour, 1995) suggests that 
"It is no longer clear if a computer system is a limited form of organisation, or if an 
organisation is an expanded form of computer system". 
Another stimulus for the creation of 'The Virtual Organisation' is the increasing 
recognition that, for certain types of work, the Fordist principles of mass production 
have resulted in a decrease in employee satisfaction and efficiency - a phenomenon 
described by Peter Drucker as far back as 1951 (Drucker, 1951). 
Drucker stipulates that industrialisation destroys the prestige of individuals in 
traditional work. It has long been argued that new forms of communications 
technologies have the potential to reverse this trend. For example, Iyenger (Iyenger, 
1972) states that technology is "causing an implosion forcing people back together in 
tribal unity". 
McHale (McHale, 1972) provides another perspective on how technology has affected 
the social environment. He states "( besides the enlargement of the physical world 
now available to our experience, these media (newspapers, television, and radio), 
virtually extend our physical images of the world for our daily appraisal. They 
provide psychical mobility for the greater mass of our citizens. Through these 
devices we can telescope time, move through history, and span the world in a great 
variety of unprecedented ways". McLuhan's vision of the "Global Village" (McLuhan, 
1989) is now, for some, a reality thanks to the information highways of the Internet. 
Information: The gate between two worlds 
Information interaction between the social and the technological world can be 
represented by the image of a mirror. We shall call this the Socio-Technical mirror. 
Information interchange in both environments share many identical traits. One may 
be considered to be a mirror image of the other, although there are subtle differences 
that exist in these opposing systems. 
At the most basic level, both environments use various tools to represent information 
(such as language, symbols, pictures, icons, etc). These are tools that reflect or model 
real life events and environments. 
Information exchange in both worlds results in synergy, where the whole is more than 
the sum of the parts. In the social system this is achieved through group interaction 
and the use of shared knowledge. In the technical system, this occurs when data is 
aggregated and transformed to new data that is then networked and exchanged. 
Technical systems have never been able to mirror the social world accurately or 
completely. The technical system is simply a repository and converter of data that is 
only given form and meaning through the user. It is people who create knowledge 
systems (Walsh, 1995) and information from that data. Technical environments lack 
the framework, based upon a socially derived consensus, required to give the data the 
form and meaning that it has in the social world. 
Virtual information environments (such as E-mail, and the Internet) may represent a 
departure from this. They have shown themselves to be capable of evolving beyond 
their original technical specification. ARPANET, the ancestor of the Internet was 
never conceived as a medium for virtual communities, and yet, today the Internet has 
grown into an environment that support MUDS and MOOS*. 
Page 242 IEMC 96 Managing Virtual Enterprises 
Traditional systems analysis anjd design methods were never designed to suplport the 
'soft' issues of information that relate to the social environment, such as power, 
meaning and control. 
How can we address these issues? The answer is with information itself. Information 
is neither objective (as traditiorially extolled in Systems Design) nor completely 
subjective. Information is instc5a.d inter-subjective: common meaning can be extracted 
through shared action and cultiirie (Mingers, 1995) as lhappens with virtual 
c omm u n  it i es . 
Socially formed information systems (knowledge), and IT systems such as Virtual 
Information Systems, share the commonality of inforrnation. Socially basedl 
knowledge systems are created by social interaction, but can often be influenced by 
the technology that mediates this, process. Conversely, Virtual Information Systems, 
such as virtual communities, are created in artificial environments but are influenced 
by the social norms that mediate social interaction. 
Using social systems to create protocols; for the 
virtual environment 
Traditional systems analysis and design methods such as SSADM, IE, Yourdlon and 
other Structured Methods, take into consideration some of the social or 'soft' issues 
involved in new Systems development. However, they more than often fail to 
adequately make the connection between the technical and social aspects of 
information, its role and its subsequent use. These methods follow techniques thlat 
eliminate or distance soft aspects of information, in a bid to delayer 'fuzzy' issues for 
clear and systematic analysis. Gibbons et a1 (Gibbons, 1994) provide an appropriate 
summary. 
"Systems models imply greater stability in the relationship between actors than is 
justified given what we know 131' distributed knowledge production. More hielpful 
descriptions could be worked out by trying to develop models that incorporate the 
evolution of patterns of intercmnections; the ability to establish, on a recurrlent basis, 
new modes of exchange -" 
This section provides, in outline, a methodology that moves away from traditional 
systems analysis and design methods. As with 'soft systems' methods there is a shift in 
emphasis towards social context to achieve systems olptimisation. This methodology 
reflects a structure that places {equal weighting on sociial and technical structure. It 
recognises the inter-subjective nature of information as the dominant form of 
information exchange in the organisation and the environment at large. 
Previously, this paper identified that information systems can be categorised with both 
social and technical systems. I[t has suggested that the new forum for this 
convergence is fast becoming Ithe Virtual Information System. Therefore, it follows, 
that a medium is required to facilitate the transition of information systems between 
the technical and social worlds. The authors suggest that this may take the form of 
Protocols based on social theories. Protocols, are used in the sense of 'fixed rules of 
accepted behaviour used by agents'. 
It is proposed that Information !;ystems are split into three Protocols: Physical 
Protocols, Learning Protocols, and Cultural Protocols. We believe that classic 
approaches, do not go far enough in taking into consideration the various social1 and 
psychological factors that make up the decision making process of individuals. 
Understanding these factors will1 make for a better 'fit" or  interface between systems 
design and human interface. 
Managing Virtual Enterprises IEMC 96 Page 243 
The diagram below illustrates some of the factors that may be included under these 
headings. The list is by no means complete. 
Socio-Technical 
Mirror 
Data Representation 
Technical (Objective) 
Information 
I 
I Data Environment Social (Subjective) 
Information lntersubjective Information 
Learning Protocols 
Culture Learning and innovation Work Practice 
Group Dynamics Individual Learning Strategy 
Pseudo-Cultures Group Learning Control 
Ethics Rituals Hierarchy 
Myths Knowledge as a Resource Technology 
Stories Structure 
Symbols 
A Mirror Representation of Information Systems in the Social and Technical Environment 
These protocols are clearly inter-related both on a micro and macro level. Their 
influence on each other can be understood by applying Structuration Theory 
(Giddens, 1984), (Orlikowski, 1992). 
There are several reasons for using Structuration theory. Firstly it enables the flexible 
interaction of social theories with other theoretical approaches. It builds on the 
relationship between human interaction, social action and social structure, and 
illustrates the relationships and cause/effects that these factors have on one another. 
In this sense, Structuration Theory has proved to be a useful medium for 
understanding Socio-technical systems. It has been applied to Information systems 
interpretation by a number of authors (De Sanctis and Poole, 1994), (Orlikowski, 
1992), (Walsham, 1990), (Barley, 1986), (Boland, 1985). 
Orlikowski's treatment of Structuration Theory in particular takes into account the 
fluid and dynamic nature of VIS. Orlikowski states "rather than positing design and 
use of disconnected moments or stages in a technology's life-cycle, the structurational 
model of technology posits artefacts as potentially modifiable throughout their 
existence. In attempting to understand technology as continually socially and 
physically constructed, it is useful to discriminate analytically between human action 
that affects technology and that which is affected by technology" (Orlikowski, 1992). 
Conclusions 
Virtual environments have a greater potential to narrow the divide that currently exists 
between Individual and machine. It is a technology that is offering a new reality. It 
represents the coming together of two opposing worlds: that of the technical and the 
social. 
Virtual Technologies will, in the same way as the personal computer, play out their 
future social position in the organisation. As company structures change and adapt in 
a quest for perfection, profit and globalisation it may prove that this technology is the 
key to achieving these aims. Virtual systems however are in their infancy and as such 
Page 244 IEMC 96 
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Managing Virtual Enterprises 
require a framework for application and use. This can only be achieved through 
appreciating the nature of infornnation and the interaction between the social ancl the 
technical world. 
It involves recognising information is more than an interface for conveying meaning: 
that it has significances attributed by the users of the information and that thiese come 
about through shared action ancl culture. 
The use of a set of universally applicable standards, or protocols that are formed from 
critical aspects of the social and technical worlds may be the answer to achieving 
greater integration between the systems. Unlike traditional systems analysis and 
design methodologies, these protocols will achieve more understanding of the cause 
and effect of human interaction, action and social structure in relation to 
technologically mediated information systems. We suggest that using Orlikowski's 
structuration model (Orlikowski, 1992) may be one way of achieving this. 
We believe that such a methodology will make possible the creation of an analytical 
framework that is compatible wiith both the technological and societal domaiins. One 
that will bridge the gap between these two worlds and help create a culture that can be 
constantly reconfigured through continual interaction with information. 
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i- Virtual Reality Systems, including Virtual Information Systems (VIS) such as E-mail, increase 
interaction. They are a medium that allows more flexibility and makes possible representation of real 
life systems. For example, E-mail is an enhanced conversational medium that approximates the 
informality of everyday speech. Theoretically Virtual environments have the potential to enable 
people to interact within virtual worlds, outside the confines of time, space and social conformity. 
* MUDS - Multi-User Dungeons, and MOOS - Multi User Object Orientated - textually created virtual 
worlds that simulate social communities. 
Page 246 IEMC 96 Managing Virtual Enterprises 


Accounting and the Reproduction of Culture: 13udgets and the process of Structuration&quot;, Working Paper No 1168,

Can we Transform a post industrial society?&quot; from The Futurists, edited by Toffler A, Random House

Capturing the Complexity in Advanced Technology Use: Adaptive Structuration Theory&quot;,

iind Powers l3 R, &quot;The Global Village, Transformations in World Life and Media in the 21st Century&quot;,

Information and Meaining: Foundations for an Intersubjective Account&quot;, Information Systems,

Managerial and Organisational Cognition: Notes from a trip down Memory Lane&quot;,

Social Theory and the Study of Computerised Work Sites&quot;,

Technology as an occasion for Structuring, Evidence for Observations of CT Scanners and the Social Order of Radiology Departments&quot;,

The Cultural Foundations of Society&quot;,

The New Production of Knowledge - The Dynamics of Science and Research in Contempolry Societies&quot;,

The New Society, The Anatomy of Industrial Order&quot;,

The Plastic Parthenon&quot;, $2, from The Futurists,

The Virtual Community&quot;,

Tlhe Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structure&quot;,University of California Press

The future of information systems-using social systems to create protocols for the virtual environment (systems analysis through social analysis)

The future of information systems-using social systems to create protocols for the virtual environment (systems analysis through social analysis)

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