Memo+2+Questioning+a+Text

=** Saints, demons, wizards and systems: why information technology reforms fail or underperform in public bureaucracies in Africa  **= =** Stephen B. Peterso  **=


 * What is the text about – empirically? **
 * What phenomenon is drawn out in the text? A social process; a cultural and political- **
 * economic shift; a cultural “infrastructure;” an emergent assemblage of science-culture- **
 * technology-economics? **


 * The paper looks at how technology infrastructure and tools are being used in the public sector in different countries in Africa, and the unique challenges developing nations have in using technology in the government. **


 * Where is this phenomenon located – in a neighborhood, in a country, in “Western **
 * Culture,” in a globalizing economy? **


 * In Developing Nations in Africa **


 * What historical trajectory is the phenomenon situated within? What, in the chronology **
 * provided or implied, is emphasized -- the role of political or economic forces, the role of **
 * certain individuals or social groups? What does the chronology leave out or discount? **


 * Post colonial Africa in the late 20th century. The political forces of African nations re-building themselves and defining themselves in how they are seen. It is implied that many of the chaotic environments and histories of these developing nations contribute to the high failure rate of IT projects in the public sector. **


 * What scale(s) are focused on -- nano (i.e. the level of language), micro, meso, macro? **
 * What empirical material is developed at each scale? **


 * The main scale is that of the African nations as a whole. Each case study deals with one IT project in that African nation. **


 * Who are the players in the text and what are their relations? Does the text trace how **
 * these relations have changed across time – because of new technologies, for example? **


 * The main players are the so called Saints, Wizards and Demons. These are different type of people that work or deal with the government that help (or hurt) the progress and development of an IT project in their nation. They don’t so much change over time as they change and influence each other. **


 * What is the temporal frame in which players play? In the wake of a particular policy, **
 * disaster or other significant “event?” In the general climate of the Reagan era, or of **
 * “after-the-Wall” globalization? **


 * Most of the use cases come from nations that have just ended a civil war or armed conflict, and are re-building their nation from the ground up. **


 * What cultures and social structures are in play in the text? **


 * The culture is that of government workers in developing African nations and the political structures they share in their environment. **


 * What kinds of practices are described in the text? Are players shown to be embedded in **
 * structural contradictions or double-binds? **


 * The general environment is where much is asked, but little is given. These workers develop practices where great reform is asked and even expected, the five areas of systems development in African bureaucracy is looked at, and each could be seen in a way as a double bind. They are: building systems without saints, managing demons, compartmentalizing systems, integrating system compartments, and **
 * insulating systems. **


 * How are science and technology implicated in the phenomenon described? **


 * The main point of the paper is to examine how government IT projects should be managed, and how they are really managed in developing African nations. **


 * What structural conditions– technological, legal and legislative, political, cultural – are **
 * highlighted, and how are they shown to have shaped the phenomenon described in this **
 * text? **


 * Many factors are considered in shaping the development of government IT. The political structures, and those who over see these projects are seen as many times have the largest effect. Leaders who champion these IT reforms and who can push through the uncertainty and **
 * bureaucracies can be more successful than those who don’t. **
 * How – at different scales, in different ways – is power shown to operate? Is there **
 * evidence of power operating through language, “discipline,” social hierarchies, **
 * bureaucratic function, economics, etc? **


 * Power is seen mostly through the actual political structures in place in these nations. Some with very strict hierarchies and bureaucratic functions. **


 * Does the text provide comparative or systems level perspectives? In other words, is the **
 * particular phenomenon described in this text situated in relation to similar phenomenon **
 * in other settings? Is this particular phenomena situated within global structures and **
 * processes? **


 * The different African nations are compared to each other, and some of these issues are compared to how developed nations might deal with them, so as to give a sense about what is unique about developing nations in how they use IT. **


 * What is the text about – conceptually? **
 * Is the goal to verify, challenge or extend prior theoretical claims? **


 * The main goals is to provide a new theoritcal framework at looking at the political environment in developing nations and how they might better manage and develop IT projects. **


 * What is the main conceptual argument or theoretical claim of the text? Is it performed, **
 * rendered explicit or both? **


 * That if the right combination of government reformers (saints) and appropriate technical experts (wizards) come together, developing nations can experience a rapid introduction of **
 * information technology reform. The difficulty is that many times there is a wrong mix of saints, wizards and demons, which allow for failure in the development of IT projects. **


 * What ancillary concepts are developed to articulate the conceptual argument? **


 * Better definition of exactly who and what makes up these saints, wizards and demons, and studies into how these different situations in these environment play out, and how they could be different. **


 * How is empirical material used to support or build the conceptual argument? **


 * Different cases studies of IT projects in developing African nations. **


 * How robust is the main conceptual argument of the text? On what grounds could it be **
 * challenged? **


 * The study is based off of different case studies in IT development in African nations. It’s pretty robust, but could be challenged by case studies that have different types of actors that can not be classified as saint, wizard or demon. It also does not spend any real time considering how the public helps or hurts these IT developments, effect of media, or even the effect out outside NGO’s or other organizations and funding. **


 * How could the empirical material provided support conceptual arguments other than **
 * those built in the text? **


 * I don’t think so. All the data included in the text conforms very well to the theory provided. **


 * Modes of inquiry? **
 * What theoretical edifice provides the (perhaps haunting – i.e. non-explicit) backdrop to **
 * the text? **


 * unsure how to answer this question. **


 * What assumptions appear to have shaped the inquiry? Does the author assume that **
 * individuals are rational actors, for example, or assume that the unconscious is a force to **
 * be dealt with? Does the author assume that the “goal” of society is (functional) stability? **
 * Does the author assume that what is most interesting occurs with regularity, or is she **
 * interested in the incidental and deviant? **


 * That the main factors are those of the inside players in the government and not that of outside factors or influences. There are assumptions on goal or purpose of both society and technology giving better structure and stability. Which is seen as needed in these areas. **


 * What kinds of data (ethnographic, experimental, statistical, etc.) are used in the text, **
 * and how were they obtained? **


 * My understanding that data was gathered and collected on case studies found by this author, both from his experience, and other sources. **


 * If interviews were conducted, what kinds of questions were asked? What does the **
 * author seem to have learned from the interviews? **


 * How was the data analyzed? If this is not explicit, what can be inferred? **


 * Case studies are looked at where they are similar and where connections can be drawn to tie them together in the theory provided. **


 * How are people, objects or ideas aggregated into groups or categories? **


 * Into the saints, wizard or demon. **


 * What additional data would strengthen the text? **


 * Maybe some data on economic factors, like average salary, charity funds, foreign aid, etc. **


 * Structure and performance? **
 * What is in the introduction? Does the introduction turn around unanswered questions -- **
 * in other words, are we told how this text embodies a research project? **


 * It provides more answers than questions. Setting the stage for the theory and data that fits into it. **


 * Where is theory in the text? Is the theoretical backdrop to the text explained, or **
 * assumed to be understood? **


 * The theory is in the introduction. **


 * What is the structure of the discourse in the text? What binaries recur in the text, or are **
 * conspicuously avoided? **


 * There is not much discourse in the text. More of one side of the argument for the theory. **


 * How is the historical trajectory delineated? Is there explicit chronological development? **


 * Chronology is shown in the review of lit in this area of study, which there is not much of as the time of this article. **


 * How is the temporal context provided or evoked in the text? **


 * Yes, but barely. **


 * How does the text specify the cultures and social structures in play in the text? **


 * It talks about how the weak structure of bureaucracy in developing nations can both help and hurt the success of IT projects. **


 * How are informant perspectives dealt with and integrated? **
 * No **
 * How does the text draw out the implications of science and technology? At what level of **
 * detail are scientific and technological practices described? **


 * There is a focus on software development and IT management. **


 * How does the text provide in-depth detail – hopefully without losing readers? **


 * Mentions and diagrams some of the more technical subjects, and helps define or create new terms to better explain some processes. **


 * What is the layout of the text? How does it move, from first page to last? Does it ask for **
 * other ways of reading? Does the layout perform an argument? **


 * It’s layout is to perform an argument and that is all really. **


 * What kinds of visuals are used, and to what effect? **


 * Some charts are used to explore the different categories of saints, wizards and demons, **


 * What kind of material and analysis are in the footnotes? **


 * None, just citations to other papers. **


 * How is the criticism of the text performed? If through overt argumentation, who is the **
 * “opposition”? **


 * Not as far as I can see. **


 * How does the text situate itself? In other words, how is reflexivity addressed, or not? **


 * unknown **


 * Circulation? **
 * Who is the text written for? How are arguments and evidence in the text shaped to **
 * address particular audiences? **


 * Written for those who wish to understand and improve IT project in African nations. **


 * What all audiences can you imagine for the text, given its empirical and conceptual **
 * scope? **
 * Academics in managerial science, IT, CS, policy makers, political scientists. **
 * What new knowledge does this text put into circulation? What does this text have to say **
 * that otherwise is not obvious? **


 * Helps define better the environment of developing nations and what challenges and promise they have that other developed nations might not have. **


 * How generalizable is the main argument? How does this text lay the groundwork for **
 * further research? **


 * Could be more generalizable, but needs to be seen in other developing nations in other parts of the world. **


 * What kind of “action” is suggested by the main argument of the text? **


 * That more saints and the “right” wizards are needed in these nations to help their IT projects. **