Toward a typology of the sociotechnical in engineering practice

There remains a surprising lack of empirical research on the day-to-day work experiences of engineers and other technical professionals. Nonetheless, a growing body of scholarship in engineering studies and allied fields has revealed that engineering practice can be viewed as a kind of sociotechnical performance, with many job tasks requiring technical expertise as well as extensive social interactions and negotiations. The goal of this paper is to offer preliminary insights toward developing a typology of the sociotechnical in engineering practice. Analyzing interviews with early career engineers, we present our findings organized around three themes: 1) learning in engineering practice, 2) engineers as sociotechnical gatekeepers, and 3) sociotechnical interactions with boundary objects. These findings have implications for engineering education by demonstrating the need for learning activities that mirror the engineering workplace.