Theoretical and Practical Implications from the Use of Structuration Theory in Public Sector is Research

To gain better understanding of the development, implementation and use of information technology (IT), many scholars in the field of information systems (IS) use structuration theory (ST). However, ST is, so far, more seldom applied to, and reflected upon, in studies of public sector IS to account for (unexpected) outcomes of IT development and implementation. This paper creates an overview of the use of ST in studies on public sector IT in order to identify theoretical and practical implications for the digital public sector. Most (ten out of twelve) papers in this field apply ST to empirical studies, while three papers were found to adapt ST to fit public sector settings, and none were found to critically address ST. While ST as a lens for studying public sector IT was thus seen to have practical usefulness, theoretical usefulness is still underdeveloped regarding theory adaption and contextualization. Based on this study we argue that there is a need to further investigate the risks associated with the transfer to the public sector as it is important to achieve conscious adaptation and use of ST in public sector IS in order to progress with using ST in that context.