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Cited by 121Information Systems Theories and ImplementationComputational and Text Analysis MethodsManagement and Organizational Studies

Toward Generalizable Sociomaterial Inquiry: A Computational Approach for Zooming in and Out of Sociomaterial Routines1

Gaskin, James, Berente, Nicholas, Lyytinen, Kalle, Yoo, Youngjin·2014·MIS Quarterly
DOI 10.25300/misq/2014/38.3.10
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Abstract

In this paper, a computational, mixed methods approach that combines qualitative analysis with a novel approach to sequence analysis for studying the entanglement of human activities and digital capabilities in organizational routines is described. The approach is scalable across multiple contexts and complements the dominant idiographic modes of sociomaterial inquiry. The approach is rooted in the epistemology of a “rational reconstruction” consistent with the interpretive stance underlying the sociomaterial position. It arms researchers with the means to seek and uncover regularities in the ways human activities and digital capabilities become entangled across contexts by enabling the identification and articulation of generalizable patterns of sociomaterial activity. The computational approach is founded on sequence-analytic techniques that originated from the field of computational biology (genetics), but are now gaining popularity in the study of temporally ordered social phenomena such as organizational routines. These techniques are extended by drawing upon theoretical insights gained within sociomaterial scholarship on how the digital and the social become entangled. By detecting the variation in activities, actors, artifacts, and affordances that comprise what we denote a sociomaterial routine, the approach directly attends to ways in which human actors and the material features of technology become entangled in patterns of practice. Beyond motivating and describing the approach, the different insights that researchers can generate through its application in the study of the digitalization of organizational routines are illustrated. We conclude by suggesting several lines of inquiry that can enrich sociomaterial research.

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  • Research using sequence analysis epitomizes the advance of computational methods by importing theoretical backdrops from evolutionary theory and complexity science.

    “While still in its early stages, research using sequence analysis (Gaskin et al. 2014), for instance, epitomizes this advance, as it seeks to import new theoretical backdrops from evolutionary theory and complexity science (Yoo 2012).”

    From Recombination in the open-ended value landscape of digital innovation (2018) · cites this paper as Gaskin et al. 2014

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Related

Authors
Gaskin, J., Berente, N., Lyytinen, K., & Yoo, Y.
Affiliations
  • Brigham Young University (US)
  • University of Georgia (US)
  • Case Western Reserve University (US)
  • Temple University (US)
ORCID
Venue
MIS Quarterly
Publisher
MIS Quarterly
Published
2014-09-01
Volume
38
Issue
3
Pages
849-872
ISSN
  • 0276-7783 (ISSN-L)
  • 2162-9730
DOI
10.25300/misq/2014/38.3.10
OpenAlex
W1581782493
Cited by
121
References
114
Citations by year
2026: 10 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 21 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 13 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 1
FWCI
36.91
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • MIS Quarterly (publishedVersion)
  • Journal of the Association for Information Systems (submittedVersion)
  • Warwick Research Archive Portal (University of Warwick) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Information Systems Theories and Implementation
  • Social Sciences › General Social Sciences › Computational and Text Analysis Methods
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Management and Organizational Studies
Keywords
organizational routines, digital capabilities, human-technology entanglement, sequence analysis, rational reconstruction, generalizability, affordances, clinical practice patterns

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