The use of Grounded Theory and of Arenas / Social Worlds Theory in Discourse Studies : A Case Study on the Discursive Adaptation of Information Systems

This paper exemplifies the combined use of Grounded Theory and of the Arenas/Social Worlds Theory in a study of the discursive interaction amongst middle managers at a UK University administration and academic computing services. This study aimed at exploring the role of discursive interaction and negotiation in the organisational adaptation of information systems, by defining the premises upon which discourses were constructed and deployed on the basis of particular worldviews and how in turn they informed back different worldviews. It presents key lessons learned from this approach in relationship to the roles of codification, of relationships bewtween conceptual categories and between between theoretical influences and empirical work, as well as those emerging from the lived experience of research analysts.