111: Visible & Invisible Work -- Susan Leigh Star (Part 1)
In this episode, we focus on the emerging discourse from the 1990s on how automated systems would potentially change the very meaning of work. The discussion is on a seminal work of Susan Leigh Star and co-author Anselm Strauss, \u201cLayers of Silence, Arenas of Voice: The Ecology of Visible and Invisible Work,\u201d published in CSCW\u2019s flagship journal, Computer-Supported Cooperative Work, in 1999. The article focuses on the challenges and risks of automating work processes without due consideration of all the invisible work done in an organization that systems designers might overlook. Moreover, it addresses the unintended consequences of making invisible background work visible, such as making it easier for managers to monitor and control.