Which was more important in shaping the final outcome in Painter’s case study—the organization’s technical system or its social system? What STS
principles discussed in Painter’s case can be generalized to any project?
Describe what you see as the critical elements of both the technical system and the social system, and how they interacted over the course of
the implementation. Identify what you see as the key turning points in the process, and how the resolution reflected the influence and function
of each system.
Association of Information Systems. (n.d.) Socio-technical theory. Retrieved from http://istheory.byu.edu/wiki/Socio-technical_theory
ComputingCases.org. (2011). Why a Socio-Technical system? Retrieved from http://computingcases.org/general_tools/sia/socio_tech_system.html
Scacchi, W. (n.d.). Institute for Software Research, University of California Irvine. Retrieved from
http://www.ics.uci.edu/~wscacchi/Papers/SE-Encyc/Socio-Technical-Design.pdf
Once you are familiar with socio-technical terms, read the following case study:
Painter, B. (n.d.). Socio-Technical Design of Knowledge Work: A Case Study. Retrieved from
http://www.moderntimesworkplace.com/STS_KnowledgeWork.pdf
