Title
The Capability Approach Community Informatics
Abstract
This article integrates key theories and concepts associated with the Capability Approach to community informatics (CI), a domain of sociotechnical theory and practice concerned to improve the lives of people in need. While the social value propositions for community informatics are useful for orienting pragmatic research and practice, they are currently not well considered theoretically. Sociological theory is therefore explored to provide a stronger anchor to community informatics as compared to the narrower theoretical agenda of information systems. Within this framework, the Capability Approach is identified as one example of a strong social theory with potential for adaptation into community informatics. This would have several effects, including strengthening internal theory, and building capacity to engage in stronger dialogue with other disciplines, including sociology and information systems. This new approach to CI theory via sociological theory also allows for the adaptation and testing of other bodies of theory.
Year
DOI
Venue
2014
10.1080/01972243.2014.896687
The Information Society
Keywords
Field
DocType
social theory,ict4d,development informatics,community informatics,theories of the middle-range,sociotechnical theory,capability approach,effective use
Information system,Social theory,Informatics,Sociological theory,Sociology,Knowledge management,Capability approach,Engineering informatics,Sociotechnical system,Community informatics
Journal
Volume
Issue
ISSN
30
3
0197-2243
Citations 
PageRank 
References 
3
0.76
10
Authors
2
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Larry Stillman1278.02
Tom Denison283.66