Computer-based Information Systems and Human Service Organisations: Emerging Problems and Future Possibilities

Computer-based information systems (IS) have been implemented in human service organisations over the last 30 years in the belief that new forms of technology will make the delivery of services more efficient in a number of ways. However, research is emerging that demonstrates that current systems may have unforeseen and unintended consequences for human services practice and may actually impede the delivery of services. In this article, this research is explored and related to examples of problems with information systems drawn from the Australian context to suggest that different forms of IS need to be developed for use in human service organisations. It is proposed that an ethnographic approach to research that focuses on the interactions between individual users in different parts of the organisation and which captures the organisational and social context for these interactions may provide insights to guide the future design of IS.