Lupauksellisista mielikuvastoista datatyön käytäntöjen mutkikkuuteen: Etnografinen tutkimus sosiaali- ja terveydenhuollon dataistumisesta

Authors

• Marja Alastalo Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio
• Iiris Lehto Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio
• Essi Iisakka Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.23996/fjhw.179074

Keywords:

datafication, data work, ethnography, expectations, information systems, practices

Abstract

This article presents a research project examining expectations directed toward data, and the practices of data production and use in healthcare and social welfare services. Theoretically, the study is grounded in science and technology studies and critical data studies. The datafication of health and social services is analysed primarily through the concepts of sociotechnical imaginaries, friction, data work, and gendered practices. The results show that 1) the strategies and action plans of health and social services are marked by unrealistic expectations regarding digitalisation and the capabilities of data driven systems;  2) in practice, even simple automation can create friction – that is, additional work – even when such systems function as intended; 3) data work in health and social services is gendered and therefore often remains invisible; and 4) the maintenance of data quality is hindered by organisational factors, unstable and incomplete information systems, lack of time and resources, and incorrect entries. The authors argue that, in order to understand datafication, it is essential to study how data driven technologies operate in practice and to develop concepts that enable the analysis of their functioning.