Papers by Hameed Chughtai
IFIP advances in information and communication technology, 2024
Information Systems Journal, Jan 20, 2024
Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks, Jul 21, 2023
Cambridge Handbook of Qualitative Digital Research
Big data and algorithmic decision-making have been touted as game-changing developments in manage... more Big data and algorithmic decision-making have been touted as game-changing developments in management research, but they have their limitations. Qualitative approaches should not be cast aside in the age of digitalisation, since they facilitate understanding of quantitative data and the questioning of assumptions and conclusions that may otherwise lead to faulty implications being drawn, and - crucially - inaccurate strategies, decisions and actions. This handbook comprises three parts: Part I highlights many of the issues associated with 'unthinking digitalisation', particularly concerning the overreliance on algorithmic decision-making and the consequent need for qualitative research. Part II provides examples of the various qualitative methods that can be usefully employed in researching various digital phenomena and issues. Part III introduces a range of emergent issues concerning practice, knowing, datafication, technology design and implementation, data reliance and al...
International Conference on Information Systems, 2014
The purpose of this paper is to problematize the idea of the ethnographic field that is usually t... more The purpose of this paper is to problematize the idea of the ethnographic field that is usually taken for granted in Information Systems (IS) field research. The field is the touchstone of reality which the ethnographer encounters yet it is often thought of something fixed and merely 'out there' where the ethnographer goes to conduct the research. However, recent advances in anthropological scholarship disclose that the field might be in constant flux. In this paper, thus, we focus on just one aspect of the changing field, that of spatial volatility. We report some spatial issues during our eight months of ethnographic fieldwork among young information technology professionals in a large scale technology organization. We suggest that the hermeneutic of volatility can provide access to significant moments during fieldwork by taking spatial aspects into account. The study aims to contribute toward adding conceptual tools in the ethnographic toolkit for IS researchers.
In this paper we introduce Johan Huizinga’s ludic perspective to information systems research wit... more In this paper we introduce Johan Huizinga’s ludic perspective to information systems research with the aim to understand large complex social phenomena, specifically how the younger generation interacts with technology in their everyday organizational practices. Against an anthropological background, we employ Huizinga’s ludic approach to grasp everyday practices using the concept of play. We specifically invoke this novel concept in an ongoing critical ethnography of young professionals ’ everyday encounters with IT in a large organization. Our findings endorse the idea that young people seem to be at play with IT in their everyday practices. This paper adds two contributions to IS research: first, it introduces Huizinga’s ludic perspective as a framework to help understand everyday practice; second, the organizational ethnographic evidence sheds light on the practical intricacies from young people’s perspective, thus placing the use of IT in the broader context of everyday practic...
Life in the modern societies, principally in the Western world, has been demystified. This demyst... more Life in the modern societies, principally in the Western world, has been demystified. This demystification process has caused the social structures like technology, to lose some of the charm they had during the early Industrialisation period. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have become integral parts of our identity in the context of organizational and personal life; the dependence on technology blurs the line between real and virtual worlds. This paper attempts to bridge the gap in understanding our dependence on modern technology. An attempt has been made to dissect the humantechnology dependency to find out how technology is interpreted, it’s meaning in the modern world, and what are the working mechanisms that are feeding this dependency as it grows with the growth of ICTs. The paper concludes that there is neither a single source of dependency nor a root cause. Instead the answer lies deep within the mesh of social patterns and structure and how we interact wi...
In this paper, we discuss an empirical example of the everyday aesthetics of engagement with info... more In this paper, we discuss an empirical example of the everyday aesthetics of engagement with information systems work practices. Drawing on an ethnographic study, we suggest that the information systems phenomena can be seen as a form of artwork in the practices of a new generation of IT professionals. Using the aesthetic ontology of art, an artwork is conceptualised as something that manifests, articulates, and reconfigures the human practices in a digital society. This paper is intended as an empirical contribution towards advancing the discussion of the aesthetics of engagement in the information systems literature.
Commun. Assoc. Inf. Syst., 2019
This paper reports on a workshop hosted at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in September, ... more This paper reports on a workshop hosted at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in September, 2018. The workshop, called “Giving Voice to the Voiceless: The Use of Digital Technologies by Marginalized Groups”, focused on discussing how marginalized groups use digital technologies to raise their voices. At the workshop, a diverse group of scholars and doctoral students presented research projects and perspectives on the role that digital technologies have in activist projects that represent marginalized groups that have gained momentum in the last few years. The studies and viewpoints presented shed light on four areas in which IS research can expand our understanding about how marginalized groups use digital technologies to address societal challenges: 1) the rise of cyberactivism, 2) resource mobilization for cyberactivism, 3) cyberactivism by and with marginalized groups, and 4) research methods for examining how marginalized groups use digital technologies.
European Journal of Information Systems, 2020
ABSTRACT The intention of this article is to open up a dialogue on the importance of giving expli... more ABSTRACT The intention of this article is to open up a dialogue on the importance of giving explicit attention to the human body when studying information systems phenomena. The human body influences the ways in which a person interprets and uses technology. Although we bodily engage with our world (people, things and places), we generally take our bodies for granted, and view them as passive recipients in studies on information technologies and organisational phenomena. Theoretical frameworks built on embodiment indicate that human beings are embedded in their social context, but they do not often include the human body with its somatic aspects (such as orientation, position and movement). Using a theoretically informed ethnographic case, I draw attention to how the human body affects the ways in which we interpret and use technology. The findings suggest revisiting the idiosyncratic view of human embodiment, which often overlooks somatic orientations and modes of engagement. The article contributes a theoretical framework relevant for inquiry into the structure of somatic practices in information systems. I conclude with a discussion of the implications for theory and practice.
Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 2020
This paper reports on the second Workshop of a World University Network (WUN) Research Developmen... more This paper reports on the second Workshop of a World University Network (WUN) Research Development Funded project on "The trans-nationalization of Indigenous movements: The role of digital technologies" at the University of Southampton, UK. The workshop explored interdisciplinarity and how interdisciplinary collaboration can help scholars study complex social phenomenon, such as the ways in which marginalized Indigenous communities use and shape digital technologies (such as social media) to enhance their cause. The workshop brought together scholars from diverse disciplines to engage in a critical debate. In addition to scholars from information systems, scholars from history, political science, geography, literature, arts, and anthropology came together to discuss how marginalized Indigenous communities can use digital media. The workshop highlighted the need for more interdisciplinary research and called for more critical approaches to bring such marginalized topics to the forefront of research in information systems. We consider three broad areas of inquiry in this paper: demarginalizing methodology for interdisciplinary research, interdisciplinary perspectives for demarginalization, and interdisciplinary contexts for demarginalization.
Computers in Human Behavior, 2019
This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 2019
I examine Albert Borgmann’s concept of device paradigm as a way to underscore the significance of... more I examine Albert Borgmann’s concept of device paradigm as a way to underscore the significance of human values in one’s engagement with digital work in an organizational setting. Device paradigm explains the pervasive patterns of everyday engagement with information technologies as devices that facilitate prosperity without burden and efforts and, in so doing, can downplay the human values in practices. Although prior research has highlighted the significance of focal things and practices, much remains to be learned about the role of human values in contemporary everyday engagement with digital technologies. Drawing on a critical ethnography of everyday practices at an information technology firm (approximately 300 employees), I apply the critical social theory of Borgmann to analyze how digital work is firmly anchored in human values, and how device paradigm can be used as a critical lens to examine the contemporary everyday engagement with information technology. The study reveals...
Information Systems Journal, 2016
The concept of 'the field' is significant in ethnographic research as well as qualitative researc... more The concept of 'the field' is significant in ethnographic research as well as qualitative research methods more generally. However, how a field researcher enters the field is usually taken for granted after gaining access to the field. We suggest that entrance is a distinct phase of fieldwork that differs from negotiating access. Entrance is not a trivial event; rather, it is a rite of passage into a complex practice world and marks a critical field moment. Drawing on our ethnography and insights from hermeneutics and anthropology, we show that a practical understanding of the field represents a fusion of horizons where a fieldworker is thrown. The concept of thrownness highlights the fact that the fieldworkers' own historicity and prejudices affect their entrance into the field; hence entrance into the field orientates an ethnographer in the field and influences the entire period of fieldwork that follows. Our theorizing is intended as a contribution towards advancing the discussion of qualitative research methods.
IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology, 2014
This paper seeks to place the phenomenon of technology within the context of everyday practices u... more This paper seeks to place the phenomenon of technology within the context of everyday practices using the logic of practical rationality. We draw some insights from our ethnography of young professionals and shed light on their everyday technological practices by invoking the concept of entwinement from hermeneutic phenomenology. Our findings reveal that the new generation users are becoming intimately entwined with information technologies in their everyday practices. Our study contributes toward the ongoing debate concerning theorizing of technology and its relationship to practice.
The field is where an ethnographer does the fieldwork, yet a discussion of one´s entrance into th... more The field is where an ethnographer does the fieldwork, yet a discussion of one´s entrance into the field is essentially overlooked in the IS research literature. This paper suggests that entrance into the field can be seen as a rite of passage into a practice world. Using phenomenological hermeneutics, we direct the focus to everyday being-in-the-world to develop a practical understanding of the field as a fusion of horizons where an ethnographer is thrown. The concept of thrownness suggests including one´s historicity and prejudices as one enters the field. We provide some empirical evidence from an ethnographic field study at a large scale IT services organization. This paper is intended as a contribution to the discussion about qualitative research methods in information systems.
Recently some Information Systems researchers have suggested that the younger generation engage w... more Recently some Information Systems researchers have suggested that the younger generation engage with information technologies in a different way from the older generation. To gain a deeper understanding of this phenomenon, we have been conducting ethnographic research on the technological practices of young professionals within an organizational context. Our initial findings suggest that young people become engrossed in information technology in their everyday practices. We describe this engrossment in everyday phenomena as play, using the interpretive concept of ‘play’ as developed by Erving Goffman and expanded by Clifford Geertz. Our study aims to contribute towards theorizing of the everyday practices of young people’s engagement with IT.
European Journal of Information Systems, 2020
Pandemics and natural disasters -what do they have in common? Both disrupt social and organisatio... more Pandemics and natural disasters -what do they have in common? Both disrupt social and organisational practices. Both call for resilience in society. Information systems can foster and enhance the resilience of people, communities and organisations by strengthening their ability to adapt to uncertainty, enabling a transition towards an appropriate restoration of order in society. COVID-19 has caused significant disturbances at all societal levels. The impacts range from national lockdowns to social distancing and self-isolation. Everyday practices and business processes are severed or have been halted. Resilience is needed. But how can we foster resilience in the face of a pandemic? What lessons can we learn from other crises like natural disasters? The purpose of this brief communication is to identify important insights from a study of the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 and illustrate how they are relevant to the current crisis. We identify the role of information systems in fostering resilience against crisis, and suggest some recommendations regarding transformation for resilience more generally.
In this paper we introduce Johan Huizinga’s ludic perspective to information systems research wit... more In this paper we introduce Johan Huizinga’s ludic perspective to information systems research with the aim to understand large complex social phenomena, specifically how the younger generation interacts with technology in their everyday organizational practices. Against an anthropological background, we employ Huizinga’s ludic approach to grasp everyday practices using the concept of play. We specifically invoke this novel concept in an ongoing critical ethnography of young professionals’ everyday encounters with IT in a large organization. Our findings endorse the idea that young people seem to be at play with IT in their everyday practices. This paper adds two contributions to IS research: first, it introduces Huizinga’s ludic perspective as a framework to help understand everyday practice; second, the organizational ethnographic evidence sheds light on the practical intricacies from young people’s perspective, thus placing the use of IT in the broader context of everyday practice...
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Papers by Hameed Chughtai