ABSTRACT
At present digital technology is a generic element in the transformation of work practices through ways we communicate, administrative procedures, the organization of production processes, and so on. To be useful in specific practices, the technology has to be adapted to local needs in relevant manners. In healthcare, electronic patient records are introduced in order to make hospital practices more efficient; in retail stores databases allow efficient monitoring of the inflow and outflow of goods; in the car-manufacturing industry computer technology monitors production processes and customizes products according to buyers’ specifications. As a result of this development, knowing and skills tend to become more specialized (for empirical analyses and illustrations of the interplay between technology and specialization of work practices, see Heath & Luff, 2000; Luff, Hindmarsh & Heath, 2000; Resnick, L., Säljö, R., Pontecorvo, C., & Burge, B., 1997; Zuboff, 1988). Such changes in the cultural tools we use in everyday life as well as in professional settings make it important to study how professional knowing and learning are organized in various practices.
