Community-based leadership and (social) practice theory: some questions to consider

Some questions to consider as I read through Shove, et al., chapter "Promoting Transitions in Practice" from the book The Dynamics of Social Practice (Sage 2012).

Practices are configurations of elements: meaning, materials, competences.  They are reproduced and transformed through a structuration process (cf. Giddens).  For policymakers and social innovators, this way of framing the relationship between action and structure offers insights that may be useful when thinking about strategies of change and transition to meet new objectives or demands on a community of practice.

With respect to ICT and development, practice theory offers a way to consider the intractability of existing ways of doing and being and suggests a set of considerations for technology stewards and others in community-based leadership roles to introduce and support the emergence of new practices in line with the community's needs and aspirations.

Here are some analytical questions to consider when beginning to study the role of the technology steward or other community-based leaders in relation to ICT-related practices:

• What role does community-based leadership perform as "carriers" of practice with respect to the use of ICTs in the life of the community?  

• Have they been able to successfully (re)configure elements of practice to include ICT in new or different forms of use in the life of the community?

• What types of "informational capabilities" do community-based leaders embody and how do those influence their practice?

• To what extent do the ICT-related practices of technology stewards and others in community-based leadership roles stand apart from others in the community (i.e., are unique or different) and to what extent do they overlap with others in the community?

• If technology stewards and other community-based leaders exhibit unique or different practices from the community, how were these arrived at?  To what can we attribute these differences in practice?  Who or what has influenced those in a leadership role?

• Is a community-based leadership, by definition, where the configuration of elements "pivots" on ICT?  Or can this form of "leadership" pivot on other elements of practice (meaning, competence)?  

This is most certainly not an exhaustive list to consider, but it is a starting point in developing a narrative inquiry approach and when seeking out and speaking with those in community-based leadership roles with respect to ICTs.