Of Ethnography, Ethnomethodology and Workplace Studies

John Hughes

I fully realise that you all wish that proceed would be reasonably historical Lucy Suchman was standing here to and focus the story around the give this plenary talk. Wisely but experiences of Lancaster. This is politely she declined the honour. It is simply a device to tell a story rather no fun having to give a talk to an than a claim to any kind of intellectual audience amply peopled by one's pre-eminence. Nobel prizes are not at friends, on a Friday when the call of stake here. However, purely the Grafton is already gathering contingently, Lancaster has been one momentum in the minds of many. of the foremost institutions in CSCW, What I want to say is a few words the major package within which about ethnography, ethnomethodology ethnography entered into system and system design mainly by way of design. Notice I did not say clarification rather than any new ethnomethodology - and for reasons insight. Save that for the Grafton. As which, I hope, will become clearer as many of you already know, one of the the story unfolds. surprising turns in the last decade is the acceptance of ethnography as an In the beginning was the word ... important contributor to system design. As it also happens, many of the people As with so many things, it all began who pioneered this move were also with the word and the word was ethnomethodologists. It would of written by Lucy Suchman and the course be easy to construct some high word - or, rather, a number of words - minded story about why it was that Plans and Situated Actions. A book ethnomethodology, after being ignored which seemingly gave voice and for so long by the sociology demonstration to the sociological point mainstream, became accepted by hard- of view that technology can be nosed system designers. But, as with understood as a feature of interactional many such developments, it was much work. The fact that it was also an more low-minded and contingent. In attack on cognitivism did not go amiss. fact, it had little to do with Nor did the fact that it was written by ethnomethodology at all and much someone then a member of Xerox Parc more with ethnography as fieldwork - which, then, was trying to bring a and a happy coincidence of amiable social dimension to bear on system boozers. design and, largely through the I was asked to review all the work persuasive powers of John Seely in the area focussing on the work at Brown, one of the senior managers, Lancaster (and one might as well added yet more lustre to the reception include in that Manchester, too), and of the book. The further fact that Lucy saying something about its ‘usefulness' had actually been taught by Harold - an interesting notion - and its Garfinkel and knew Harvey Sacks relevance for foundational issues in meant that it could not fail to be of ethnomethodology and wider debates interest to ethnomethodologists. in social theory - another interesting However, in the UK the story notion, ‘social theory’. I will, of begins earlier with what was known as, course, do my best on all of these for those of us involved - Bob counts. Perhaps the best way to Anderson, Wes Sharrock, Dan Shapiro,

7 Richard Harper and myself - as the the Report on the first ATC study first air traffic control study in 1987- contained more explicit 98. Although ostensibly about the ethnomethodological discussion that automation of air traffic control (but did subsequent ones. Regrettably this really about trying to understand more did not result in a publication - other about rule following in a 'real time, than some papers - which could have real world' environment) it made the reached a wider audience and situate point that although aspects of ATC itself among the growing number of 'naturally' lent themselves to ethnomethodological studies of work. automation it would be wise to There were many practical reasons for understand how the work was actually this not least the problems of more and done before doing so: a position which more research grants to deliver on and has become widely held as a major little time to do the necessary tenet of CSCW though we would not concentrated thinking that such a book wish to claim any originality to the would have demanded. This apart - and thought. it is not a trivial matter - what is At a paper on the ATC project important to note is that what was of given at the first ECSCW Conference interest to CSCW was not at Gatwick, a colleague from ethnomethodology but ethnography. I Computing, Tom Rodden - whom I am not suggesting that had never met even though he had ethnomethodology was irrelevant but, been at Lancaster for over a year then - rather, that its presence was rather said that we were doing CSCW and muted. To a degree this is reflected in that we should get together to work on the clumsy phrase, ‘ethno- research projects which we did. This methodologically informed was closely followed by the second ethnography' which was often used to ATC study this time in conjunction describe what we were doing. I still with computer scientists who sought to cringe at this inelegant and not very use the findings of the ethnographic brave phrase. study - this time done by Famous Dave There were, I think, a number of Randall who replaced Richard Harper - reasons for this. One was the for the design of systems. By this time refreshing fact that computer scientists the “juggernaut” was rolling. Bob were not, on the whole, very bothered Anderson had taken up an appointment about sociological wars. One did not of Cambridge EuroParc and, shortly need to bother reviewing ontological, afterward attracted Richard Harper epistemological reflexivities - or there - a process which has been going whatever passes for sociological on for some years subsequently as that debate these days - in order to convey institution has raided Lancaster and the results of studies. But, more than Manchester for talent! Research grant this, what the computer scientists followed research grant in what wanted was not so much seemed like a never-ending treadmill. ethnomethodology, or any other There are, I think, two things worth approach for that matter but noting about this first phase, to call it descriptions of 'what was going on' that. when, say, controllers did the business, or what processing a cheque Ethnography vs. ethnomethodology looked like. In short, what they wanted was ethnographic reportage rather than The first is that it was not dramatically sociological analysis. ethnomethodological though perhaps

8 Nor of course is this surprising. No It was this motivation which, I matter how much distributed system suppose, resulted in the clumsy designers wanted to introduce a social expression 'ethnomethodologically dimension to their thinking, they did informed ethnography', that is, looking not want sociology. Theirs is not a at how people conduct their work in sociological pursuit. What they wanted real settings, doing what they do in the was information about the 'real world, mutual accomplishment of sometimes real time' activities of people working divergent intentions, treating work as within a setting and into which their socially organised and, above all, technologies would have to situate interested in how it is socially themselves. But, in my view, this is organised in that setting. This means just the advantage that looking at the actual working division ethnomethodology has in the context of labour as routinely and ordinarily of design, in that its studies of work manifested in persons' meaningful begin from the point of the details of orientation to their work, not work as the work. As we all well know, some idealised conception. The task is ethnography can be the vehicle for simply to report in adequate detail how many persuasions. Even Actor they go about doing what they construe Network Theory can. Moreover, in the as the things to be done. It was this field of CSCW ethnography is almost kind of approach which was like a mandatory irrespective of whether one breath of fresh air to computer espouses Activity Theory, Distributed scientists brought up to believe that the Cognition, Grounded Theory or even social sciences meant cognitivism, task Task Analysis. One could say that it analysis and other curiosities of that has become fashionable to do ilk. ethnography in system design, so much so that a few interviews with users can The `discovery' of teamwork and the be described as ethnography. But, it sociality of decision making can be argued, ethnomethodology has, as its first requirement, the detailed There was, however, a more meaty and study of work activities as the orderly directly ethnomethodological thrust in in and through product of the analysis of controlling work. Up to intersubjective action. that date - and as far as I know it In this respect one might recall probably still is predominantly so - Garfinkel's promotion of a programme much of the research on controlling of studies of work originating on the work was cognitivist in orientation and observation about the 'missing what' of had been so for some years. For the sociology work, namely, the work example, one of the issues that that people actually do. In the preoccupied the then current thinking sociology of work one will find a had to do with the cognitive overload concern with all kinds of topics - that controllers were likely to face as employee morale, job satisfaction, air traffic densities rose. Thus, there unionisation, political affiliations, etc. - were numerous psychological studies but not very much about the work directed toward building a mental itself. Thus, the 'missing what' was the model of controlling in order to inform actual work. And this is the theme that the design of the next generation of has preoccupied much of the work in control suites, to address which tasks CSCW in Lancaster and elsewhere. could be automated, and to facilitate How members accomplish their work the selection and training of tasks, knowing what they know. controllers. It was this kind of thinking

9 which had produced a number of glance' publicly available. These are, technical facilities on the control suite of course, familiar arguments within - such as conflict alerts - which ethnomethodology. However, what we controllers refused to use thereby were able to do was describe the creating a constant puzzle and worry to 'actual' course of decision making in the scientists involved. terms of a sequence of tasks following Being suitably unencumbered by the ethnomethodological injunction to such a tradition but armed with a more ask, 'what do I do next?' While clearly sociological interest in the work, we there is some planning in that the were able to bring out two things: the traffic flows have fairly predictable teamwork of controlling and the rhythms, the strips contain flight plans sociality of decision-making. These of aircraft about to come into the were, in significant respects, aspects of sector, and there are rules to follow for the same thing, namely, the social particular routes, but there are always organisation of controlling around the ‘normal, routine’ contingencies which suite and in the control room. What have to be dealt with. In many ways, came out early in the fieldwork was the decision-making process is one of that the controller, along with the rest ‘buying time’, reducing the costs of of the personnel around the control coordination with adjacent sectors, and suite, are involved in a 'working leaving time to deal with the more division of labour'; that is, a division of troublesome elements of the traffic tasks and responsibilities which while flow. The process is not so much the specified in the job descriptions, etc., application of a mental model as the not surprisingly conspicuously failed sequencing of a series of practical to adequately describe the actual tasks, dealing with the traffic flow as it coordination work going on in `real happens and arranging it in a manner time' decision-making around the suite. consistent with the spirit of the air Without going into detail I do not have traffic rules. time for, effectively it was a pattern of Even though I have had to gloss work motivated by 'looking out for over the rich analysis that came out of each other' and each member of the these two studies, it would be nice to team being able to `at a glance' say that it had an impact on the monitor the various resources sociology of work but, regrettably, this furnished by the suite - radar, strips, cannot be said. The sociology of work and RT. had all but disappeared presumably on But, importantly, it was also clear the grounds that Mrs Thatcher had that the notion of 'mental model', again already killed off most of the work not surprisingly, also failed to describe done by what were the hoped for the decision-making that was involved cannon fodder of the revolution. And in making the traffic flow - again, as a anyway, it was, apparently self- 'real time, real world' activity. Behind evidently, clear that the latest crisis in the idea of the 'mental model’ was the sociology was to be solved by notion that the controller was almost examination of the media, film, following a plan which was diasporas, identity – not forgetting implemented in the actual control. more theorisation. Apparently in a While there was a colloquial sense to post-modern world nobody works. this idea, it was clear that a literal The studies did, however, gain interpretation of a 'mental model' could some prominence in the CSCW not account for the coordination work community and are still cited as mentioned above which was 'at a exemplary studies of work for CSCW

10 though, it has to be said, this focus was course, there is an important sense in not a prominent one at the time. which the very statement of the But it was one thing to begin problem prejudges the nature of the working within CSCW, but quite social phenomena subscribing to what another to work out just what this Jeff Coulter has called the 'container might involve. There were, of course, model of organisation'. In various issues to deal with which were forms this has always been the unfamiliar within sociology, many of argument against ethnography, namely, which we tried to address in the that it is essentially the study of cases COMIC project. and is not a generalising method such as the social survey. The COMIC Project This was an embarrassing issue from an ethnomethodological point of I'm sorry but I can never recall what view. Partly because, and familiarly, it this acronym stood for. Suffice it to wants no truck with the say that it was one of the first major methodological agenda of positivistic research projects - funded by Esprit - sociology or with fanciful ideas of in CSCW and where, among many macro and micro levels of social other things, the place of ethnography phenomena, but one could see that in system design was set out along generalisability was an issue even for with reports of a number of work people with no background in either of studies. In addition there were a these issues. We came up with number of other problems addressed, basically two defences. The first was problems posed initially by computer the familiar ploy of pointing out that scientists. what passed for generalising studies in The first was how to communicate HCI and CSCW was in the main to get ethnographic findings to designers. a few students to use a system This may sound odd - after all why not prototype – and this hardly warranted talk to each other? But essentially it strong claims to generalisability. The boiled down to trying to relate a second was to identify types of graphical medium and a verbal one. fieldwork studies in terms of their Software engineers love working in duration and purpose within CSCW: a diagrammatic symbols whereas ground clearing exercise which, again, ethnographers are nothing if not has assumed more prominence within discursive. The problem was, I think, the CSCW community than it perhaps more to do with unfamiliarity with deserves as little better than an act of respective domains rather than any cowardly desperation in a period when principled problem, though we did, for we thought that we could be found out a time, play with DNP, a support any time. The success of the COMIC system trying to connect ethnographic Project proved to mark an important findings with a diagramming tool so turning point in the careers of many of that designers could explore the those who took part, both here and in implications of the findings. Europe and, in an important way, Another was the problem of established 'ethnomethodologically in- scale. Studying relatively focused work formed ethnography' as the main sites, such as control rooms, is one contender in establishing the thing but often systems are designed importance of fieldwork in CSCW. for whole organisations. What Since then, and again speaking of possibly could ethnography contribute Lancaster, the studies of work within to these kinds of design problems? Of the ambit of CSCW have proceeded

11 adding studies of aspects of banking only regarded as beneath attention - is work, office work, among others. it just my impression that most of For now I want to move on to some current sociological theorists are issues of more direct relevance for middle class? - but also gets left out of ethnomethodology and ethnography the theoretical picture. If ordinary but, again, drawn from experiences of things are considered this is through work study within CSCW. the theoretical lens. Thus, if ethnography is a means of looking at The benefits of atheoreticism the commonplace, the ordinary, then from an ethnomethodological point of Earlier I remarked ethnomethodology view, it requires this be done had particular advantages in its use of independently of any sociological ethnography to inform system design agenda which seeks to state in advance when compared with other approaches what is of interest in ordinary affairs; which also use fieldwork methods. It is to look at people as if they lived their here where I can simply point to the lives without reference to what massive difference between sociology finds interesting. The ethnomethodologv and constructivist ethnomethodological researcher is, in sociology and the methodological effect, relaying understandings decision of the former to look at the appropriated by an apprenticeship in phenomena in its `raw state' the field. independently of the apparatus of One can see the differences if we sociological theories and methods look briefly at another approach used which obscure the phenomena they in CSCW which makes use of presumed to address. The 'raw state' of ethnography, namely, distributed the phenomena is, of course, the cognition. This draws on the venerable 'everyday world' and the 'ordinary if mistaken distinction between the affairs' of the members of society. ‘inner’ mental world of individuals and Against the idea that the order of the ‘outward’ world of behaviour. society is a 'hidden order', While starting from the individual’s ethnomethodology offers the notion mental operations as conceived in that the ‘real society’ is itself socially cognitivism, it realises that rigorous determined according to practices insistence upon this stance is restrictive which are themselves provided by the and needs to be expanded by society. ‘extending’ the mental domain into the Here I want to borrow - as so many ‘outer’ world. Accordingly, artefacts times - an assessment of can be regarded as extensions of ethnomethodology from Wes Sharrock mental functions - filing cabinets, to the effect it says the kind of things records, and computer storage you couldn’t disagree with. It ought to systems`, for example, can be bring us back in touch with the things characterised as ‘memory operations’. we recognise as the most normal, It is such thinking, I suggest, which ordinary, natural things in the world. encourages system designers to The aspiration to general theorising is think of Organisational Memory and an aspiration to novelty, to things that the like, and to design systems which are not ordinary, to give new insights bear little or no relationship to the to people, to portray society as activities in which record keeping, something different to the way it is filing cabinets, etc. have their voice. usually experienced. This means that The ordinary, practical activities get the commonplace, the ordinary is not left out.

12 As I see it, because surrounded by software engineering ethnomethodology eschews any methods of one sort of another. Getting commitment to any sociological theory the right method for the job is a but has to approach the most normal, constant preoccupation - a Holy Grail ordinary and natural things in the one might say. Against this kind of world, then ethnography done under its mentality, ethnography looks to be auspices and relayed to system design impossibly lackadaisical. They, again ought to have a number of benefits. in our experience, very often like to The main one being that it can - the see, at last and with much relief, an caveat is always ‘if done properly’ - approach which produces descriptions tell it the way it is ordinarily, routinely, of the work which they can recognise, everyday. This may not be what the and glimpse that perhaps the lack of designer is designing for - it may be this is what makes systems fail. something innovative which changes As we all know, ethnography is the way things are done - but it is, I very much a practical activity, no would argue, an essential background matter how much we might, say, want to informing even the most radical of to engage in the ‘How-was-it-For-You- system designs, not to forget that not School of Ethnography?’ - which is all things require technological not, in my view, ethnography at all but solutions. self-indulgence. The fieldworker has to Another benefit is that engineers and collect his or her material not as designers need not get involved in the dictated by strategic methodological kind of debates which have considerations but by the flow of preoccupied social scientists for activity within the setting. Nor does it centuries and are no nearer resolution require any special or arcane skills for than when first articulated. I do not obtaining access and information. On intend any criticism here for the the whole, people are more than problems of the social sciences are willing to talk to fieldworkers and let deep and troublesome. So are the them observe their activities. But problems of engineers and designers despite the apparent lack of method, and which would be made even worse the fieldworker cannot really fail. Even if they had to contend with the a few days of fieldwork is likely to problems of the social sciences. Of produce more material than one can course, it does not deter all of them by use. Ethnography is a diffuse exercise any means. and is as much a trawl of some setting Nor do these benefits, if they are as it is something methodical, a matter such, always allay the anxieties of of seeing what turns up when you hang designers, especially engineers and about in a particular kind of place. This designers from industry. In our does not mean that ‘anything goes’ but experience, while there is a widespread it does make the exercise a very recognition of what CSCW is trying to practical one of making do with what do, namely, introduce a social has been gathered and assembling it dimension to the design of distributed into an account of the work in the systems (and they are generally quite setting and as a ‘real world, real time’ happy at the lack of social science set of arrangements. Of course what theory for which they typically have else is done with the materials belongs, scant respect for, anyway) they do in an important sense, to what I was express some anxieties over the lack of talking about earlier, namely, the method in ethnography. These are different social science agendas. But, people whose whole working lives are at the level of the ethnographic

13 materials, fieldworkers will very often case. Much will already have been come up with much the same kind of decided. In a study of the police we did things and it is at this level, I suggest, some years ago, one of the systems we where it is most useful to the engineer looked at was HOLMES, a system and the designer. devised to cope with, and coordinate, the masses of information that large- Transformation of design? scale inquiries generate. There were a lot of problems with this early version Has ethnography – ethnomethodo- but one knew that, at a cost of £8m, it logically informed or otherwise - could not ‘fail’. transformed system design? What kind For a further example, in the retail of claims can we make on its behalf? bank we have been studying for some The answer, of course, is that it years now, it is clear that the hasn’t transformed design which is not technological changes have as much to to say that it hasn’t made a do with dispensing with labour and its contribution to design thinking. Its use consequences, as it has to do with the remains still firmly rooted within supposed benefits of new distributed research rather than in industrial and technologies. And, despite the commercial contexts and there are manifold problems that the places in the UK and Europe which incorporation of these new would not be seen to design without it. technologies generate, things are not There are signs, albeit small ones, that going to change except in the direction there is a growing interest in industry of more of the same. The in using fieldwork as an additional organisational imperatives, many resource for system design. But this is deriving from the economic conditions a slow business. in which such organisations operate, In any case, it is important to are too strong for that. The technology, remember the conditions under which in other words, is only a small part of most system design in industry is done. the story of organisational life and, The specification of requirements for a moreover, one which is often very system is not, or rarely, controlled by dependent on what else happens in that designers themselves. All kind of life. Losing the kind of local parties get into the act including knowledge that members of banking marketing, higher management and branches had by removing many of the information systems departments (or banking functions to regional cost their equivalent), they often change centres might be a price worth paying, their minds (not unusually when the especially if one could recreate this in design process is well underway and some way by using new technologies fateful decisions already made) and and organising work responsibilities have to respond to changes in the appropriately. But even if these economic climate and more. All of attempts fail the cost may still be worth which makes the design process as paying, not least because it is too late, much an organisational one as a and too costly to change back to the process of technological design. All of way things were before. Further, which makes it hard to determine at some features of a system may be which point an ethnographer should desirable but can they easily, and enter the design process. Ideally, it cheaply, be obtained, and will they ought to be right at the beginning have negative consequences? These before matters are settled. kind of questions simply indicate the Unfortunately, this is unlikely to be the difficulties of organisational change - a

14 lesson which perhaps those fieldwork in leisure, in the home and ‘disciplines’ which are much more anywhere else where system design is effective in design, namely, going to make its presence felt. In this accountancy and management science, respect the future looks promising. ought to take more note of. Further, there remains the problem of Of course, ethnography might have making fieldwork less dependent upon more purchase if it had determinate the survival of the ethnographer and solutions to the problems of design. the enduring problem of making But, of course, it does not and, ethnographic materials and analyses probably, cannot. The best it can hope available in a form that designers will for is that by explicating the work find intelligible and useful. To this end setting as a lived ‘real world, real time’ experiments are ongoing with stories, collection of activities, the design is vignettes, and scenarios which are better informed. And, even though this familiar enough to fieldworkers but, sounds modest - and it is meant to also, and perhaps more tentatively, sound so - compared with what was drawing on the idea from architecture previously available, it is no small of pattern languages’ as a means of achievement. Sensitising system representing patterns of activities in a design to the social dimension and, form more usable by system designers. moreover, offering it a means of One can see the dangers of such an realising that without the confusions of enterprise but it is one worth social science theories is, in my view, a consideration and research. considerable achievement even though The role of ethnography as the largely unrecognised by the rest of vehicle for ethnomethodology and I sociology - but then who cares? suppose I should add, sociology, is a What more can ethnography and modest one. And, of course, ethnomethodology do in this domain? ethnomethodology’s agenda is wider Except for more studies of work, it is than that of system design and it would hard to see quite what more is be quite wrong to suggest that the involved. Since ethnomethodology future of ethnomethodology lies in eschews the aspiration of generating system design beyond the fact that it theory then it can hardly lay any claim may offer better employment to improving sociology beyond opportunities than sociology. But, for Brewstering other approaches or, more me, one of the attractions of tactfully, issuing reminders that ethnomethodology compared with the sociology ought to be a more serious rest of sociology was not its modesty - business than is usually allowed by one has only to mention the names sociologists and, as part of this Harold Garfinkel and David Sudnow to seriousness, abandoning its suggest that modesty is not a exaggerated ambitions. paramount virtue among at least some Ethnomethodology has been doing of its significant figures - so much as both of these things for a long time the seriousness with which it pursued now but without very much success. the sociological project. An important In the field of work study and design part of this was its refreshing honesty the opportunities are enduring. Work about what was achievable, what was and computers are not going to go do-able, that it made the idea of a away. If anything they will intrude recognisable and familiar world the more and more upon our lives even centre of its studies, and did not make worse than mobile phones do now. sociology out to be a cult for the This will mean new challenges for marginalised middle class academic.

15 Let me not, however, end on such a sour note. Ethnomethodology and ethnography may have much to contribute to design - and today we are going to listen to some of these contributions - but let us not be over- ambitious or run away with the idea that we are the elusive ‘silver bullet’ that will solve the problems of design - or get rid of werewolves. Interventions in the design process are often about second-guessing designers, that is, showing what the unforeseen consequences of design decisions have been. But, of course, the problem of design is anticipating such problems, making it a very difficult business and a challenge we have yet to rise to let alone fail at. There is no reason to think that we can do better than anyone else which is not to say that we have no contribution to make.

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