Affordance potency: Explaining the actualization of technology affordances

Abstract

Given the importance of information technology (IT) in effecting organizational change, scholars have strived for many years to theorize the ways in which IT can produce the changes intended for it. Recent arguments claim that most information systems (IS) research has taken a limited theoretical focus on the information technology (IT) artifact, which arguably should be at the core of the IS discipline (Benbasat & Zmud, 2003). This research engages directly with the IT artifact by evaluating the use of an electronic medical records system and its relation to actualization of technology affordances. We conducted a case study at a large urban acute care hospital in the Midwestern United States with registered nurses working on inpatient care units as the clinicians of interest. Through interviews with nurses and other clinical stakeholders, observation of nurse's work practices on three patient care units in the hospital, and direct examination of the medical records system, we develop theoretical insights into the role of IT in work practices. The novel concept of affordance potency is introduced as an integral theoretical construct in our model of affordances, helping to explain actualizations of IT in use. Our contribution provides a nuanced yet powerful way of understanding the nature of IT artifacts and their relationships to technology users and work practice.