Understanding Usages and Affordances of Enterprise Social Networks: A Sociomaterial Perspective

Recent studies have emphasized the potential of Enterprise Social Networks (ESN) for companies. However, so far, researchers have paid little attention to usages and affordances of ESN. To investigate this research issue, we anchor our analysis on Leonardi’s Affordances Theory. A case study has been conducted in a large French company, where we conducted thirty-five interviews with users of an ESN. Content analysis of the interviews highlights multiple concepts related to affordances and sociomateriality. We identify both positive and negative affordances that guide, influence or constraint human action and determine the way in which social and material agencies work on each other. In comparison with traditional ICT, we argue that ESN require specific attention because ESN social features offer individuals new possibilities, new rules, and new modes of communication. Social agency is more than ever imbricated with material agency because of these social features.