A set of principles for conducting and evaluating interpretive field studies in information systems
MIS Quarterly - Special issue on intensive research in information systems
The Rise of the Network Society
The Rise of the Network Society
The Philosophy of Critical Realism—An Opportunity for Information Systems Research
Information Systems Frontiers
Two Times Four Integrative Levels of Analysis: A Framework
Proceedings of the IFIP TC8/WG8.2 Working Conference on Realigning Research and Practice in Information Systems Development: The Social and Organizational Perspective
The Information Revolution and Developing Countries
The Information Revolution and Developing Countries
Research on information systems in developing countries: current landscape and future prospects
Information Technology for Development
Implementing public information systems in developing countries: learning from a success story
Information Technology for Development
Information Technology for Development
Information Technology for Development
Capturing reflexivity modes in IS: A critical realist approach
Information and Organization
Information Technology for Development
Technological Embeddedness and Organizational Change
Organization Science
Technology, Organization, and Structure---A Morphogenetic Approach
Organization Science
Highlighting the Duality of the ICT and Development Research Agenda
Information Technology for Development
ICT Research in Africa: Need for a Strategic Developmental Focus
Information Technology for Development
Information systems strategy: Past, present, future?
The Journal of Strategic Information Systems
Information Resources Management Journal
Hi-index | 0.00 |
This paper demonstrates the value of Archer's morphogenetic approach (MA) in understanding and explaining the complexity of the broader context within which many developing country information and communication technology (ICT) projects are implemented. It does this by using MA's analytical and explanatory apparatus to examine the evolution of the context of public sector ICT provision in Kenya over the period 1963-2006. In addition to demonstrating the practical value of MA, the paper contributes to the Information Systems literature on ICT for development (ICT4D). The analysis identifies (1) global normative pressures, polity, the national socio-economic base, disruptive technology, and the emergence of multistakeholder networks as key forces in shaping the evolutionary trajectory, (2) the explicit treatment of time and temporality as key for understanding mechanisms underpinning the evolutionary process, and (3) the difficulty of cleanly isolating the implementation of individual public sector ICT projects from the broader context and ICT4D agendas. The discussion elaborates on the features of MA found to be particularly valuable in this study. The paper concludes that explicitly attending to time and temporality, and to the broader context for ICT4D projects, would contribute to the development of more nuanced accounts of such projects and a more emancipatory outlook for ICT4D research.