'Ciphers to this Great Accompt' - the Shakespearian Social Sense-Making of Theatre Professionals

Olsson, MR

'Ciphers to this Great Accompt' - the Shakespearian Social Sense-Making of Theatre Professionals

Olsson, MR

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Publisher:: Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Publication Type:: Chapter
Citation:: Social information Research, 2012, 1, pp. 17 - 42
Issue Date:: 2012-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Olsson, MR https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2814-0876	en_US
dc.contributor.editor	Widen, G	en_US
dc.contributor.editor	Holmberg, K	en_US
dc.date.issued	2012-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Social information Research, 2012, 1, pp. 17 - 42	en_US
dc.identifier.isbn	978-1-78052-832-8	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/29835
dc.description.abstract	Purpose To develop a broader understanding of sense-making as an embodied process of social construction. Methodology/approach Extended conversational interviews (Seidman, 1991) were undertaken with 35 prominent theatre professionals in Canada, Finland and the UK exploring the events and relationships that shaped their relationship with Shakespeare and his work. Inductive analysis was carried out inspired by a variety of theoretical lenses, including Dervins Sense-Making and Foucauldian discourse analysis. Findings Participants sense-making was quintessentially social in that it was not only linked to their social connections and relationships with other members of the company but also a process of social construction drawing on a variety of disparate, and sometimes contradictory, established discourses. In contrast to prevailing approaches in information behaviour, the findings emphasise the importance of understanding sense-making in a more holistic way: as a process involving emotions as well as rationality, bodies as well as minds. Research implications Information researchers need to adopt a more holistic approach to understanding the relationship between people and information: to recognise that atomistic approaches focussing on the purposive information seeking of individuals reflect an implicit systems-centrism rather than peoples lived experience. Practical implications Information researchers and practitioners need to consider the social affective and embodied nature of sense-making and consider, for example, the ways in which online social networking sites build on centuries-old communal knowledge sharing practices. Originality/value of paper The study extends our understanding of the importance of affect and embodiment for peoples sense-making, while at the same time demonstrating that they, like language are the products of social construction, both the object and generator of discourse.	en_US
dc.publisher	Emerald Group Publishing Limited	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Social information Research	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1108/S1876-0562(2012)0000005004	en_US
dc.title	'Ciphers to this Great Accompt' - the Shakespearian Social Sense-Making of Theatre Professionals	en_US
dc.type	Chapter
utslib.location	Bingley UK	en_US
utslib.for	1904 Performing Arts and Creative Writing	en_US
utslib.citation.edition	1	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/e-Press
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences/IKM and Digital Studies Program
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access
pubs.consider-herdc	false	en_US
pubs.edition	1	en_US
pubs.place-of-publication	Bingley UK	en_US

Abstract:

Purpose To develop a broader understanding of sense-making as an embodied process of social construction. Methodology/approach Extended conversational interviews (Seidman, 1991) were undertaken with 35 prominent theatre professionals in Canada, Finland and the UK exploring the events and relationships that shaped their relationship with Shakespeare and his work. Inductive analysis was carried out inspired by a variety of theoretical lenses, including Dervins Sense-Making and Foucauldian discourse analysis. Findings Participants sense-making was quintessentially social in that it was not only linked to their social connections and relationships with other members of the company but also a process of social construction drawing on a variety of disparate, and sometimes contradictory, established discourses. In contrast to prevailing approaches in information behaviour, the findings emphasise the importance of understanding sense-making in a more holistic way: as a process involving emotions as well as rationality, bodies as well as minds. Research implications Information researchers need to adopt a more holistic approach to understanding the relationship between people and information: to recognise that atomistic approaches focussing on the purposive information seeking of individuals reflect an implicit systems-centrism rather than peoples lived experience. Practical implications Information researchers and practitioners need to consider the social affective and embodied nature of sense-making and consider, for example, the ways in which online social networking sites build on centuries-old communal knowledge sharing practices. Originality/value of paper The study extends our understanding of the importance of affect and embodiment for peoples sense-making, while at the same time demonstrating that they, like language are the products of social construction, both the object and generator of discourse.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/29835