Abstract
Based on the study of unskilled work in a Danish wastewater treatment plant, the problem of formalisation of work is discussed and extended to technical processes. Five symmetrical levels of dynamics in complex technical work arrangements are proposed as a tool for understanding the limits of formalisation and for designing formal constructs in such settings. The analysis is based on concepts of heterogeneity, granularity of goals and motives, and process and structure.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Andersen, N. E., F. Kensing, J. Lundin, L. Mathiassen, A. Munk-Madsen, M. Rasbech and P. Sørgaard (1990). Professional systems development New York: Prentice Hall.
Bardram, J. E. (1998). Collaboration, Coordination, and Computer Support. An Activity Theoretical Approach to the Design of Computer Supported Cooperative Work. Ph.D. Thesis, Aarhus: Computer Science Department DAIMI PB — 533
Blackburn, S. (1994). The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Bowers, J., G. Button, and W. Sharrock (1995). Workflow From Within and Without: Technology and Cooperative Work on the Print industry shopfloor. Proceedings of ECSCW95
Droste, R. L. (1997). Theory and Practice of Waster and Wastewater Treatment. NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Engeström, Y. (1987). Learning by Expanding: An activity-theoretical approach to developmental research, Helsinki: Orienta-Konsultit Oy.
Engeström, Y., K. Brown, L. C Christopher and J. Gregory (1991). Coordination, Cooperation and Communication in the Courts: Expansive Transitions in legal Work. In The Quarterly Newsletter of the Laboratory of Comparative Human Cognition, Vol 13, Number 4.
Heath, C.C. and P. Luff (1992). Collaboration and control: Crisis Management and multimedia technology in London Underground line control rooms. CSCW Journal, 1(1–2), pp. 69–94.
Israel, J. (1979). The Language of Dialectics and the Dialectics of Language. Copenhagen: Munksgård Humanities Press.
Markussen, R. (1993). A Historical Perspective on Work Practice and Technology: The Case of National Labour Inspection Service. In Andersen P. B., Holmqvist, B. and Jensen, J. F. The Computer as a Medium. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. pp.457–477.
Mathiassen, L. (1981). Systemudvikling og Systemudviklingsmetode [English: System development and system development method]. Aarhus: Computer Science Department DAIMI PB-136.
Robinson, M. (1989). Double Level Languages and Co-operative Working, Conference on Support, Society and Culture. Mutual uses of Cybernetics and Science — Proceedings. Amsterdam 1989. pp. 79–114.
Raeithel, A. (1996) From coordinatedness to Coordination via Cooperation and Co-construction. Paper presented ad Workshop on Work and Learning in Transition, San Diego, January 1996.
Schmidt (1997) Of maps and scripts: The status of formal constructs in cooperative work. In S. C. Hayne and W. Prinz (eds.): GROUP’97, Proceedings of the ACM SIGGROUP Conference on Supporting Group Work, Phoenix, Arizona, 16–19 November 1997. ACM Press, New York, N.Y., 1997, pp. 138–147.
Star, S. L. (1989). The Structure of Ill-Structured Solutions: Boundary Objects and Heterogeneous Distributed Problem Solving. In L. Gasser and M. N. Huhns Distributed Artificial intelligence, volume II. London: Pitman Publishers, pp. 37–54.
Suchman, L. and E. Wynn (1984) Procedures and Problems in the Office. In Office: Technology and People, vol. 2, 1984, pp. 133–154.
Suchman, L. (1986). Plans and Situated Actions. Cambridge MA: Cambridge University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1999 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bertelsen, O.W., Nielsen, C. (1999). Dynamics in Wastewater Treatment. In: Bødker, S., Kyng, M., Schmidt, K. (eds) ECSCW ’99. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4441-4_15
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4441-4_15
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-0-7923-5948-7
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-4441-4
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive