Employees' Involuntary Non-Use of ICT Influenced by Power Differences: A Case Study with the Grounded Theory Approach

Introduction ICT's ability to affect organizational roles, structures, and the organization of work creates a complex relationship between technology and organization (Constantinides & Barrett, 2006; Leonardi & Bailey, 2008; Zuboff, 1988). Research has explored factors that facilitate the acceptance and use of new ICT (Beaudry & Pinsonneault, 2010; Legris, Ingham, & Collerette, 2003), causes of resistance towards using new ICT (Jian, 2007; Martinko, Gundlach, & Douglas, 2002), barriers to ICT use (Venkatesh, Bala, & Sykes, 2010), as well as power relations and political processes (Boonstra & Bennebroek Gravenhorst, 1998; Thompson, 2005). The nature of non-use is understudied, and in general it is presumed to be resistance. The study of individual experiences, cognitions, and behaviors dominate the field, at the expense of dynamic and interrelated organizational variables. We know little about involuntary non-use of new ICT at work and how it may arise. The aim of this article is to extend our understanding of involuntary non-use of new ICT in organizations. An in-depth qualitative case study of large-scale implementation of identical ICT systems in three comparable power grid companies was conducted. The new ICT was intended to fit the tasks and work contexts of three occupational groups: installers, planners, and managers. Planners and managers were accustomed to ICT, while the installers were not. Despite the installers having a positive attitude towards the new ICT, they systematically underutilized it. This article seeks to understand the differences in use between installers (ICT novices) and planners (ICT experts) by exploring power differences between occupational groups and their effect on employees' learning. ICT implementation often brings on additional organizational changes (Constantinides & Barrett, 2006), with inherent political processes visible in the narratives of those affected (Dawson & Buchanan, 2005; Symon, 2008). Due to the rather unexplored nature of involuntary non-use, this study adopted the grounded theory approach in analyzing the narratives of occupational groups. A working conceptualization of involuntary non-use different from resistance was constructed, and a framework for understanding how differences in power may institutionalize involuntary nonuse for one occupational group, but not another, within the same organization was developed. Involuntary Non-Use of New ICT at Work There are several types of technology non-use (Wyatt, Henwood, Hart, & Smith, 2005). Most studies of digital technology non-use have been conducted in a societal but not work setting (Selwyn, 2003). Involuntary non-use of new ICT at work can be placed in a socio-technical perspective, rather than in a more psychologically oriented one. Also, rather than defining involuntary non-use as solely due to the absence of technology (Slater, 1986), involuntary non-use may occur despite the presence of technology. To put it simply: involuntary non-use of new ICT at work occurs when employees want to use the new technology but are unable to due to factors beyond their control. While technology acceptance is facilitated above all by prior experience, social influence, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness (Venkatesh, Morris, Davis, & Davis, 2003), technology affordance highlights the mutual relationship between technology and the involuntary non-use of new ICT. The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (Venkatesh et al., 2003) largely builds on the technology acceptance model 1 (Davis, 1989) and 2 (Venkatesh & Davis, 2000). As an extension of the technology acceptance models, the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology predicts behavioral intention to use technology rather than actual use. A hypothesis inherent in the technology acceptance model is that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use ". …