Ethnomethodology at Work

Mark Rouncefield is Senior Research Fellow in the Computing Department at Lancaster University, UK Peter Tolmie is Principal Consultant for Ethnographic Services at the University of Nottingham, UK

'When students and other researchers ask me how to go about doing an ethnomethodological study of work, there is no simple answer to give. With this collection, what I can now do is help them see why there is no simple answer while, nevertheless, getting them started on pursuing their first studies in ethnomethodology.' Eric Laurier, University of Edinburgh, UK 'Ethnomethodology, unlike most of sociology, looks at social conduct and such things as how people use talk to organise workplaces and how the examination of code in software engineering entails particular types of reading. Because of its remarkable concern for the empirical, ethnomethodology has been widely used outside sociology, in computer science and related disciplines especially, which need such evidence to make better designs. Who the human is and what they do matters to these disciplines.' Richard Harper, Microsoft Research Cambridge, UK 'Pugnacious yet inviting, this book will be an invaluable guide for those interested in the ethnomethodological perspective on work, but also why it has proven to be so influential in the study and design of technology. The book expertly balances empirical study with theoretical sophistication.' Barry Brown, University of California, San Diego, USA 'This is an accessible, engaging and rather provocative introduction to ethnomethodological studies of work. Key topics in organisational sociology are artfully re-examined as practical concerns and achievements of engineers, bankers, and more. Mark Rouncefield and Peter Tolmie deserve thanks for crafting a collection that delivers such a distinctive contribution to the sociology of work.' Jon Hindmarsh, King's College London, UK 'Some sociologists may sigh "grow up" to the "grumpy old men" who put their unruly ethnomethodological orientation to work here. But their impatience with "conceptual", "visionary", "fictional" interpretive sociology is incisively productive for sociology today (as well as practical endeavo

• Chapter 1 The Sociologist as Movie Critic, Dave Randall, Wes Sharrock; Chapter 2 The Project as an Organisational Environment for the Division of Labour, Wes Sharrock; Chapter 3 Organizational Acumen, Peter Tolmie, Mark Rouncefield; Chapter 4 1This chapter is closely based on of ., John A. Hughes; Chapter 5 Plans and Planning: Conceptual Confusions and Empirical Investigations, Dave Randall, Mark Rouncefield; Chapter 6 The Temporal Order of Work, Andy Crabtree, Mark Rouncefield, Peter Tolmie; Chapter 7 Talk: Talking the Organisation into Being, David Martin, Jacki O’Neill; Chapter 8 Meetings and the Accomplishment of Organization, John Hughes, Dave Randall, Mark Rouncefield, Peter Tolmie; Chapter 9 Documents, Mark Hartswood, Mark Rouncefield, Roger Slack, Andrew Carlin; Chapter 10 Text at Work: Mundane Practices of Reading in Workplaces, John Rooksby; Chapter 11 Technology, Mark Rouncefield, Roger Slack, Mark Hartswood; Chapter 12 Conclusion: Ethnomethodology and Constructionist Studies of Technology, Wes Sharrock, Graham Button;