Using actor-network theory to trace an ICT (Telecenter) implementation trajectory in an African women's micro-enterprise development organization

Abstract

Arguments abound as to whether information and communication technolo- gies (ICTs) can beneªcially shape socioeconomic development and micro- enterprise, whether they are appropriate to local culture, and whether they ªt with the development approach in use. This paper uses participative action re- search to explore the impact of network translations on the actor-network of a South African rural women’s development organization. One of the three translations considered is the introduction of ICTs through a government- sponsored telecenter; in this case, inserted into a complex socio-political con- text among a myriad of actors and actor-networks. The due process model is applied to this translation to show the neglect of institutionalization factors. Using Actor-Network Theory to trace translation trajectories captures the ef- fects of the inescapable “openness” of actor-networks, effects that lead to the inevitabilities of unanticipated consequences, which result in “messes overºowing the frames constructed to contain them.”