CSCW in Public Administration: a review

Abstract

The paper sets a context for the development of Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW) in Public Administration in the problems faced with existing systems, and the crises of usability and productivity. While the support of team-work lies at the heart of CSCW, we argue that this has a broader base and consequences than is usually recognised. It may be better conceived as a shift which explicitly incorporates awareness of the social organisation of work into systems design. We argue that the specificity of Public Administration as a domain for CSCW lies in the particular combination of kinds of work and contexts of work which are distinctive to it. These are discussed in terms of organisational and juridical forms of bureaucracy and hierarchy, and the political and social dimensions of system use in Public Administration. The practical implications from a CSCW perspective are then considered under three heads. First, that of redesigning organisations, and the information management and information resources management issues which this raises. Second, that of redesigning work procedures, involving studying and modelling real world work, and the problems of modelling discretionary work, modelling rules and regulations, and building open systems. Third, that of redesigning support capabilities, and in particular making systems accessible and convenient, supporting consultation and advice, supporting social networks, and supporting communal decision processes.