Towards Anticipating IS Consequences: An Anatomy of Sociotechnical Interaction Networks (STINs)

In this paper we examine questions of how the unintended impacts of information and communications technology can be examined in order to anticipate and safeguard against negative consequences. Using the domain of the eGovernment impacts on marginalized members of the community, we examine the theoretical basis of the sociotechnical interaction network (STIN) approach and its applicability to identifying and ameliorating negative impacts of ICT-based systems. We illustrate the STIN modelling approach with reference to a case study of an integrated eGovernment system and based on our evaluation of the approach, make recommendations regarding future developments with respect to the STIN framework.