Addressing sociotechnical gaps in the design and deployment of digital resources in rural Kenya

Abstract

We argue that designing any aspect of information technology requires an understanding of sociotechnical gaps. These gaps are inherent issues deriving from the difference between what is required socially, or culturally, and what can be done technically. In the context of a British-Kenyan project, we introduce an approach for addressing sociotechnical gaps in the design and deployment of digital resources in resource-constrained and culturally different environments. We illustrate how despite having an online, asynchronous tool to visualise sociotechnical gaps among different stakeholders in a design team, we had to complement it with a pen and paper design metaphor elucidation exercise to elicit and visualise locally meaningful user interface elements.