Abstract

The field is where an ethnographer does the fieldwork, yet a discussion of one´s entrance into the field is essentially overlooked in the IS research literature. This paper suggests that entrance into the field can be seen as a rite of passage into a practice world. Using phenomenological hermeneutics, we direct the focus to everyday being-in-the-world to develop a practical understanding of the field as a fusion of horizons where an ethnographer is thrown. The concept of thrownness suggests including one´s historicity and prejudices as one enters the field. We provide some empirical evidence from an ethnographic field study at a large scale IT services organization. This paper is intended as a contribution to the discussion about qualitative research methods in information systems.