IT Project Escalation: Translation Outcomes as Antecedents to the Four Factors of Escalation Theory

Recent IT project escalation research has seen a multi-method approach to understanding what causes escalation in IT projects. Specifically, Mähring, et al. (2004) examined the DIA Computerized Baggage Handling System failure using both the traditional four factor escalation theory model and Actor-Network Theory’s (ANT) translation stage. Mähring, et al.’s findings suggested that both theoretical approaches provide complementary, albeit mutually exclusive methods for examining IT project escalation. This paper proposes an integrated view of the two theoretical approaches by examining the relationships between the four elements of Actor-Network Theory’s translation stage and the four factors (project, psychological, social, and organizational) of the traditional escalation theory model. This paper reports on research-inprogress to develop an instrument to measure the outcomes of the problematization, interessement, enrollment, and mobilization stages. Discussion of the utility of such an instrument and hypothesized relationships between the translation stages and four factors will be discussed.