A partir d’une sociologie de l’action organisée attentive à la mise en œuvre de la politique de la Fédération Française de Tennis (FFT) dans et par ses unités territoriales, notre travail analyse les effets induits par le double processus de « déconcentralisation » et de professionnalisation plus particulièrement sur la gouvernance de ces organisations. Nous montrons ici que le siège FFT, face aux menaces qui pèsent sur le tournoi « Roland-Garros » et afin de préserver son modèle, a engagé une transformation de la territorialisation de son action. Ayant défini à ce titre un nouveau mode de régulation entre les différentes organisations qui la composent, un changement est désormais à l’œuvre au sein des ligues régionales et des comités départementaux. Dans la première partie, nous montrons comment le siège FFT se sert du contexte économique pour faire évoluer sa gouvernance et pour mettre en œuvre un nouveau mode de pilotage de ses unités territoriales. La deuxième partie analyse, ensuite, le développement de cette action fédérale qui se veut plus processuelle que contractuelle, action marquée, en outre, par le caractère inter-organisationnel donnée à la résolution des problèmes de gouvernance territoriale afin de gagner en flexibilité et cohérence. Enfin, dans la troisième partie, nous relativisons les effets des nouvelles règles fédérales en démontrant que la FFT a finalement pleinement profité de l’antériorité de la dynamique de changement déjà à l’œuvre au sein des ligues même si celle-ci se déployait avec de fortes différenciations temporelles et fonctionnelles selon les territoires. / Our study is based on the sociological side of the numerous organized actions dealing with the implementation of the politics of the French Tennis Federation (FFT) among and throughout its territorial units. The goal of this research was to analyze the effects engendered by the double process of devolution –the passing of power- and professionalization, especially on the governance of these organized actions.We wanted here to show that the French Tennis Federation’s head office, confronted with the well-known threats concerning the French Grand Slam Roland Garros and in the objective of preserving its model of functioning, has engaged into a transformation of the territorialisation of its actions. To this end, it defined a new model of regulation between the different organizations it is composed of. This change is now being implemented within the regional tennis leagues and departmental committees.First, we will show how the French Tennis Federation’s head office is using the economic context in order to make its governance better and to implement a new model of management of its territorial units. Then, the second part is an analysis of the development of this federal action that is more of a process than a contract. Furthermore, this action is marked by the inter-organizational nature given to the manner of solving problems of territorial governance so that the French Tennis Federation can become more flexible and consistent. In the last part of the dissertation, we try to put the effects of these new federal rules into perspective. This is done by showing that the French Tennis Federation has in fact largely taken advantage of the changing dynamics that was already being put into action among the regional tennis leagues, even if this dynamics was highly different in matters of time and functioning depending on the territories concerned.

Le foot-fauteuil est la seule activité sportive collective proposée aux personnes utilisatrices d’un fauteuil électrique. Née en France au milieu des années 1980, cette pratique a connu un essor important et c’est aujourd’hui une des activités « handisport » qui compte le plus de compétiteurs. Paradoxalement, c’est également l’une des moins connues. L’objectif de cette thèse est de mettre au jour l’expérience de ces sportifs dits « lourdement handicapés ». Un regard praxéologique posé sur la pratique nous permettra de comprendre l’une des facettes de cette expérience : le corps agissant en situation sportive. Puis, dans un second temps, un regard « socio-phénoménologique » sera l’occasion de saisir le vécu « en première personne » de ces athlètes. Pour ce faire, nous avons observé et participé à la vie de deux clubs de foot-fauteuil de région parisienne pendant plus de deux ans. Nous avons également réalisé 16 entretiens approfondis auprès des joueurs et des entraîneurs. L’analyse phénoménologique de ces données nous permettra de reconstituer le « monde collectif » vécu par les joueurs de foot-fauteuil. Ainsi, des enjeux centraux seront mis en exergue. La problématique de la classification des joueurs et de la mise en jeu des différences sera interrogée. Nous porterons ensuite une attention particulière au rapport entre l’individu et son fauteuil. Nous verrons, pour finir, que la pratique du foot-fauteuil est un espace de socialisation particulier, où il s’agit parfois de questionner le genre et la dichotomie valide/handicapé. / Powerchair football is the only team sport for people using a powered wheelchair daily. Born in France in the mid 1980s, this practice expanded, and today it is one of the "handisport" activities with the highest numbers of competitors. Paradoxically, it is also one of the least known. The objective of this thesis is to uncover the sports experience of these "severely disabled" athletes. A praxeological view on this practice will enable us to understand one aspect of this experience: the acting body in sporting situation. Then, in a second step, the socio-phenomenological view will be an opportunity to capture the experience "in first person" of these athletes. To do this, we have observed and participated in the life of two football clubs of the Paris area for more than two years. We also conducted 16 in-depth interviews with players and coaches. The phenomenological analysis of these data will allow us to reconstruct the "world" experienced by powerchair football players. Thus, central issues will be highlighted. The problem of classification of the players will be examined. Then, we will pay particular attention to the relationship between the individual and his wheelchair. We finally see that the practice of powerchair football is a particular socialization place, where gender and abled/disabled relationships are questioned.

Cette thèse de sociologie s'inscrit dans le cadre d'une sociologie de la maladie et de prise en charge des patients du sida, elle vise à approfondir les notions de prise en charge des patients du sida par les associations à Kinshasa en RDC et celles des représentations sociales et culturelles des populations de cette ville sur le sida. Cette étude se veut qualitative dans la mesure où, elle cherche à appréhender les véritables raisons qui soutiennent l'existence des associations des malades du sida malgré les moyens précaires qu'elles disposent. Elle vise en outre, d'étudier les différents itinéraires que les malades empruntent pour se faire soigner. Enfin, cette étude veut placer la sociologie au cœur des analyses scientifiques sur la maladie, et particulièrement le sida. / This study aims at shedding some light on the social realities of HIV/Aids that doctors and patients associations face, and on the patients' representations and beliefs in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. In order to do so; we bring an analysis of the different therapeutic trajectories of these patients confronted with difficulties due the lack of access to health care and proper medical information about their disease.Thus, the absence of a coherent health policy in a country with 70 billions of citizens,among whom 12 billions of them live in Kinshasa itself, constitutes an impediment for implementing different strategies in which social workers (doctors, associations, partners) try to against HIV/Aids.The health care system, supposed to help creating concrete actions in combating this disease, still remains not efficient enough and fails to assist patients.Given the wait see attitude of public authorities towards health, the economical crisis and the demography growth, Kinshasa has become place where the HIV/Aids contamination rate grows exponentially.

L’impulsion donnée par les organes déconcentrés de l’État et la municipalité a contribué au développement des pratiques socio-sportives rennaises, grâce à l’action de structures appartenant à des secteurs divers. Cette dynamique à laquelle nous avons été associée nous a incitée à entreprendre une thèse afin de dresser un portrait du paysage socio-sportif local. Financée par le Cercle Paul Bert, la Ligue de l’Enseignement et l’UFOLEP, notre recherche s’est attachée à comprendre, à travers une démarche sociologique et qualitative, comment ce dernier se développait et se structurait. L’élaboration d’un « espace des « socio-sports », construit à partir de deux axes : l’approche de la pratique sportive et celle des publics en nous appuyant sur la théorie de l’intégration de R. Castel (1995), nous a permis d’identifier les acteurs et actrices qui se revendiquaient du « socio-sport » et de comprendre leur positionnement à la fois symbolique et pratique. La diversité des approches et des démarches observée sur le terrain contredit l’idée d’une unicité du « socio-sport » et d’un accord sur une définition unique, légitime. Une tension est présente entre plusieurs modèles, principalement celui reposant sur le modèle du sport de compétition et un autre modèle plutôt intégrateur voire inclusif. Ces tensions se cristallisent autour d’enjeux matériels, de moyens humains, financiers et symboliques : identitaires, territoriaux. Toutefois, l’analyse des approches et des démarches a fait ressortir des convergences, de possibles « caractéristiques » du « socio-sport », notamment une démarche d’« aller vers » les publics les plus éloignés de la pratique sportive et la nécessité, pour intervenir efficacement sur les territoires, de développer des partenariats. Ce travail de thèse répond à la volonté de proposer aux protagonistes un regard sur le paysage socio-sportif rennais leur permettant de ne plus l’envisager principalement sous l’angle concurrentiel mais complémentaire. / The impetus given by the decentralized state’s organs and municipality contributed in the social and sports practices development in Rennes thanks to the structures action belonging to various sectors. We have been associated to this dynamic, has prompted us to undertake a thesis in order to draw a portrait on the socio-sports landscape. Funded by the Cercle Paul Bert, La Ligue de l’Enseignement and UFOLEP, our research focused on understanding, through a sociological and qualitative approach, how this last one developed and structured itself. The elaboration of a "sociosports" space, built from two axes: the approach of sport’s practice and the one of the public, based on the theory of the integration of R. Castel (1995), allowed us to identify the actors and actresses who claimed to be "socio-sport" and to understand their positioning, both symbolic and practical.The diversity of approaches and approaches observed on the situation contradicts the idea of a single "socio-sport" and an agreement on a single and a legitimate definition. There is a tension between several models, mainly one based on the sport competition model and another rather integrative or inclusive model. These tensions crystallize around material issues, human, financial and symbolic means: identity, territorial. However, the analysis of approaches and processes revealed some convergences, some possible "characteristics" of "socio-sport", including an approach of "going towards" the most remote publics of the sport and the necessity, to intervene effectively in the territories, to develop partnerships. This thesis work responds to the desire to offer to the protagonists a look at the Rennes socio-sport landscape allowing them to no longer consider it primarily from a competitive perspective but from a complementary one.

L’hétérogénéité des formes de travail en Afrique subsaharienne conduit à repenser ce que l’on entend ordinairement par « travail » dans la relation entre travail et développement. À la diversité des activités industrieuses répond effectivement une pluralité de cadres normatifs plus ou moins formalisés qu’on ne saurait légitimement passer sous silence. En effet, ces différents systèmes de normes façonnent dans une très large mesure la manière dont se déroule le travail réel. C’est pourquoi nous avons voulu interroger leurs articulations, leurs interférences, voire leurs contradictions que les acteurs doivent surmonter dans l’activité.Pour ce faire, nous avons examiné un projet de transfert de normes organisationnelles au sein du Ministère congolais de l’Environnement, Conservation de la Nature et Tourisme à Kinshasa, en République Démocratique du Congo. Contrairement à l’idée reçue, nous défendons la thèse que le rapport au travail dans les pays d’Afrique subsaharienne n’est pas marqué de spécificités culturelles et d’exotisme ; il est le résultat d’une expérience anthropologique tissée de choix plus ou moins conscients entre des normes vitales, sociales, juridiques, politiques ou techniques, au niveau individuel ou collectif. En tant que lieu de vives tensions normatives, le travail se révèle être une entrée féconde dans l’analyse et la compréhension des changements sociaux, et interroge ainsi les espaces politiques et scientifiques dans lesquels se construisent les savoirs sur et pour le développement. / The diversity of working situations in sub-Saharan Africa requires a re-examination of the common conception of “work” within the relation of work and development. These industrious activities respond to more or less formalized normative systems, which cannot legitimately be ignored. These different systems of norms largely shape the practice of real work. The aim of this research is to question the interferences or the contradictions between these different systems of norms, which the actors are required to cope with in their activity. To this end I examined a capacity building development project inside the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Tourism in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. I defend the thesis that the relation to work in Africa is not characterized by cultural specificities or exoticism. Instead, it is the result of an anthropological experience made of more or less conscious choices among vital, social, legal, political or technical norms, on an individual or collective level. As a locus of intense normative tensions, work appears then as an appropriate point of entry into a broader analysis of social change, and therefore questions the political and scientific institutions where knowledge for and on development is produced.

1. Contextual outline of the PhD Research Climate change is today often seen as one of the most challenging issue that our civilisation will have to face during the 21st century. This is especially so now that the most recent scientific data have led to the conclusion that the globally averaged net effect of human activities since 1750 has been one of warming (IPCC 2007, p. 5) and that continued greenhouse gas emissions at or above current rates would cause further warming (IPCC, 2007 p. 13). This unequivocal link between climate change and anthropogenic activities requires an urgent, world-wide shift towards a low carbon economy (STERN 2006 p. iv) and coordinated policies and measures to manage this transition. The climate issue is undoubtedly a typical policy question and as such, is considered amenable to economic scrutiny. Indeed, in today’s world economics is inevitable when it comes to arbitrages in the field of policy making. From the very beginning of international talks on climate change, up until the most recent discussions on a post-Kyoto international framework, economic arguments have turned out to be crucial elements of the analysis that shapes policy responses to the climate threat. This can be illustrated by the prominent role that economics has played in the different analyses produced by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to assess the impact of climate change on society. The starting point and the core idea of this PhD research is the long-held observation that the threat of climate change calls for a change of climate in economics. Borrowing from the jargon used in climate policy, adaptation measures could also usefully target the academic discipline of economics. Given that inherent characteristics of the climate problem (e.g. complexity, irreversibility, deep uncertainty, etc.) challenge core economic assumptions, mainstream economic theory does not appear as appropriately equipped to deal with this crucial issue. This makes that new assumptions and analyses are needed in economics in order to comprehend and respond to the problem of climate change. In parallel (and without environmental considerations being specifically the driving force to it), the mainstream model in economics has also long been (and still is) strongly criticised and disputed by numerous scholars - both from within and outside the field of economics. For the sake of functionality, these criticisms - whether they relate to theoretical inconsistencies or are empirically-based - can be subsumed as all challenging part of the Cartesian/Newtonian legacy of economics. This legacy can be shown to have led to a model imprinted with what could be called “mechanistic reductionism”. The mechanistic side refers to the Homo oeconomicus construct while reductionism refers to the quest for micro-foundations materialised with the representative agent hypothesis. These two hypotheses constitute, together with the conjecture of perfect markets, the building blocks of the framework of general equilibrium economics. Even though it is functional for the purpose of this work to present them separately, the flaws of economics in dealing with the specificities of the climate issue are not considered independent from the fundamental objections made to the theoretical framework of mainstream economics. The former only make the latter seem more pregnant while the current failure of traditional climate policies informed by mainstream economics render the need for complementary approaches more urgent. 2. Overview of the approach and its main insights for climate policy Starting from this observation, the main objective of this PhD is thus to assess the implications for climate policy that arise from adopting an alternative analytical economic framework. The stance is that the coupling of insights from the framework of evolutionary economics with the perspective of ecological economics provides a promising way forward both theoretically as well as on a more applied basis with respect to a better comprehension of the socioeconomic aspects related to the climate problem. As claimed in van den Bergh (2007, p. 521), ecological economics and evolutionary economics “share many characteristics and can be combined in a fruitful way" - which renders the coupling approach both legitimate and promising. The choice of an evolutionary line of thought initially stems from its core characteristic: given its focus on innovation and system change it provides a useful approach to start with for assessing and managing the needed transition towards a low carbon economy. Besides, its shift of focus towards a better understanding of economic dynamics together with its departure from the perfect rationality hypothesis renders evolutionary economics a suitable theoretical complement for designing environmental policies. The notions of path-dependence and lock-in can be seen as the core elements from this PhD research. They arise from adopting a framework which is founded on a different view of individual rationality and that allows for richer and more complex causalities to be accounted for. In a quest for surmounting the above-mentioned problem of reductionism, our framework builds on the idea of ‘multi-level selection’. This means that our analytical framework should be able to accommodate not only for upward but also for downward causation, without giving analytical priority to any level over the other. One crucial implication of such a framework is that the notion of circularity becomes the core dynamic, highlighting the importance of historicity, feedbacks and emergent properties. More precisely, the added value of the perspective adopted in this PhD research is that it highlights the role played by inertia and path-dependence. Obviously, it is essential to have a good understanding of the underlying causes of that inertia prior to devising on how to enforce a change. Providing a clear picture of the socio-economic processes at play in shaping socio-technical systems is thus a necessary first step in order to usefully complement policy-making in the field of energy and climate change. In providing an analytical basis for this important diagnosis to be performed, the use of the evolutionary framework sheds a new light on the transition towards low-carbon socio-technical systems. The objective is to suggest strategies that could prove efficient in triggering the needed transition such as it has been the case in past “lock-in” stories. Most notably, the evolutionary framework allows us to depict the presence of two sources of inertia (i.e at the levels of individuals through “habits” and at the level of socio-technical systems) that mutually reinforce each other in a path-dependent manner. Within the broad perspective on path dependence and lock-in, this PhD research has first sketched the implications for climate policy of applying the concept of ‘technological lock-in’ in a systemic perspective. We then investigated in more details the notion of habits. This is important as the ‘behavioural’ part of the lock-in process, although explicitly acknowledged in the pioneer work of Paul David (David, 1985, p. 336), has been neglected in most of subsequent analyses. Throughout this study, the notion of habits has been studied at both the theoretical and applied level of analysis as well as from an empirical perspective. As shown in the first chapters of the PhD, the advantage of our approach is that it can incorporate theories that so far have been presented opposite, partial and incomplete perspectives. For instance, it is shown that our evolutionary approach not only is able to provide explanation to some of the puzzling questions in economics (e.g. the problem of strong reciprocity displayed by individual in anonymous one-shot situations) but also is very helpful in bringing a complementary explanation with respect to the famous debate on the ‘no-regret’ emission reduction potential which agitates the experts of climate policy. An emission reduction potential is said to be "no regret" when the costs of implementing a measure are more than offset by the benefits it generates such as, for instance, reduced energy bills. In explaining why individuals do not spontaneously implement those highly profitable energy-efficient investments , it appears that most prior analyses have neglected the importance of non-economic obstacle. They are often referred to as “barriers” and partly relate to the ‘bounded rationality’ of economic agent. As developed in the different chapters of this PhD research, the framework of evolutionary economics is very useful in that it is able to provide a two-fold account (i.e. relying on both individual and socio-technical sources of inertia) of this limited rationality that prevent individuals to act as purely optimising agents. Bearing this context in mind, the concept of habits, as defined and developed in this study, is essential in analysing the determinants of energy consumption. Indeed, this concept sheds an insightful light on the puzzling question of why energy consumption keeps rising even though there is an evident increase of awareness and concern about energy-related environmental issues such as climate change. Indeed, if we subscribe to the idea that energy-consuming behaviours are often guided by habits and that deeply ingrained habits can become “counter-intentional”, it then follows that people may often display “locked-in” practices in their daily energy consumption behaviour. This hypothesis has been assessed in our empirical analysis whose results show how the presence of strong energy-consuming habitual practices can reduce the effectiveness of economic incentives such as energy subsidies. One additional delicate factor that appears crucial for our purpose is that habits are not fully conscious forms of behaviours. This makes that individuals do not really see habits as a problem given that it is viewed as easily changed. In sum, based on our evolutionary account of the situation, it follows that, to be more efficient, climate policies would have to both shift the incumbent carbon-based socio-technical systems (for it to shape decisions towards a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions) and also deconstruct habits that this same socio-technical has forged with time (as increased environmental awareness and intentions formulated accordingly are not sufficient in the presence of strong habits). Accordingly, decision-makers should design measures (e.g. commitment strategies, niche management, etc.) that, as explained in this research, specifically target those change-resisting factors and their key features. This is essential as these factors tend to reduce the efficiency of traditional instruments. Micro-level interventions are thus needed as much as macro-level ones. For instance, it is often the case that external improvements of energy efficiency do not lead to lower energy consumption due to the rebound effect arising from unchanged energy-consuming habits. Bearing this in mind and building on the insights from the evolutionary approach, policy-makers should go beyond the mere subsidisation of technologies. They should instead create conditions enabling the use of the multi-layered, cumulative and self-reinforcing character of economic change highlighted by evolutionary analyses. This means supporting both social and physical technologies with the aim of influencing the selection environment so that only the low-carbon technologies and practices will survive. Mentioned references: David, P. A. (1985), Clio and the economics of QWERTY, American Economic Review 75/2: 332–337. IPCC, 2007, ‘Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis’, Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Solomon, S., D. Qin, M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K.B. Averyt, M. Tignor and H.L. Miller (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA, 996 pp. Stern, N., 2006, ‘Stern Review: The economics of Climate Change’, Report to the UK Prime Minister and Chancellor, London, 575 p. (www.sternreview.org.uk) van den Bergh, J.C.J.M., 2007, ‘Evolutionary thinking in environmental economics’, Journal of Evolutionary Economics 17(5): 521-549.

This study aims to describe the conditions, of which some youths who live in a segregated area in Sweden, see as important for their development of an identity. The study have been conducted in a manner where we put the youths own words in focus. The youths are in charge of deciding what they regard as important for their own development of their own identity. In this study we assume certain contexts, of which we base the study. These contexts include the society, the urban districts, the school, the family, and the language. A central concept in this study’s technical framework is symbolic interaction, and ethnology. The data in this study comes from group discussions with students in a school in an urban district which has been, and is segregated. Theoretical concepts and the youths own concepts serve as tools in this study. The participants in this study describe them self as not being a part of the Swedish society. They are different. Even though almost everyone of the participants in this study are born in Sweden, none of them feel that they are Swedish. Their sense of feeling secure is connected to the urban district of which they live in, school, and family. The youths describes the possibility of social networking as an important part of being secure. They describe the Swedish society as being hostile towards them as a group. They experience that the Swedes defends Sweden against them. They feel that their language is different from the regular Swedish. The participants see both a positive and a negative side of their language. They feel that the Swedes does not accept their Swedish. At the same time they feel proud of their language. They mention it as being alive. Even though they experience the difficulties in the Swedish society, they feel hopeful about their future. They see themselves in a positive way. They have an positive view of their identity.

This qualitative case study combined teacher and student interviews with observations of one physical education class to facilitate understandings of physical education learning communities. Watkins’ (2005) definition of a learning community was used as a framework to conceptualise the study. I found that physical education teachers in this study do actively develop their classes as learning communities. Five key findings are discussed. Physical education learning communities exist in a number of different forms that can be related to a learning community continuum. The learning community’s positioning on the continuum is directly related to student agency in learning. It was found that student agency is promoted through a discourse of inquiry. In this study inquiry is a central tenet of a learning community as learning is viewed as a cognitive and socio-cultural constructivist function resulting in knowledge generation (Brown, 1997 cited in Alton Lee 2003; Sewell, 2006; Watkins, 2005). As inquiry learning is a social process in a learning community, it is concurrently supported by a discourse of community, promoting students’ ability to work altruistically and collaboratively, learning together. It was found that the explicit teaching of socio-moral outcomes through socio-cultural pedagogies enhance positive peer relationships and is essential to the promotion of an altruistic discourse of community. The discourses of community and inquiry are dialectically related and communicate clear messages to students about the expectations of behaviour and learning within an altruistic community. The early stages of a physical education learning community are based on the genuine and altruistic student-teacher relationships which provide a springboard to allow opportunities for teachers to have further conversations about learning. Finally, evidence in the study suggests that philosophy plays a significant role in both the growth and oppression of the evolution of a learning community. This study suggests that the relationship between the philosophy of the New Zealand Curriculum (2007), the physical education teachers and the economic neoliberal context influences the development of learning communities in physical education.

Research on smoking has to a great deal been conducted within a public health or a medical context, or focused on policy making. Fewer studies have taken their point of departure in a social sciences context, and still fewer have analysed why individuals start and cease to smoke, and how and why smoking patterns on an aggregate level change over time and vary between different population groups. The aim of this dissertation is to analyse changes in the Swedish tobacco consumption with special emphasis at elucidating the decrease in smoking during the past half-century from different angels. Thus, the first paper explore if and how changes in smoking patterns can be understood and explained with reference to Sweden’s development as a welfare state, and in relation to socio-demographic and socio-economic circumstances. The second paper focuses on the long-term pathways to smoking cessation, by discerning several distinct trajectories from smoker to non-smoker. The third paper analyses gender differences with regard to reasons to smoke, experiences of smoking, and central elements in the cessation process. Finally, in the fourth paper, the issue of to what extent smoking cessation can be described as a process of identity change is explored.   Smoking initiation and cessation vary by socio-demographic and socio-economic factors, and the rapid decrease in smoking has resulted in a rather vulnerable group of smokers in these aspects. The results also indicate that the cessation process is complex, with personal and structural factors interacting in the long-term process, leading to multiple pathways to a smoke-free life. Moreover, they point to gender differences in reasons to smoke and to quit, and in strategies to quit smoking. In addition, identity change seems to be important in remaining smoke-free. The stated inequality in gender and class points in the direction that structural changes and social policies might be of need to decrease smoking even further. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 1: Submitted. Paper 3: Accepted. Paper 4: Manuscript.</p> / Women, Health and Substance use

Coordination in software development, especially in global software development, is important because a team cannot perform well unless its team members communicate and maintain awareness of each other's activities. In order to improve socio-technical coordination, which is coordination among team members who work on interdependent technical entities, it must be conceptualized and measured. One measurement of coordination is socio-technical congruence, which calculates the alignment between technical relationships and social relationships. The problem is that there are a large number of social and technical factors to consider when using socio-technical congruence to study coordination. Current limitations with socio-technical congruence include the inability to represent the size of gaps in coordination between people, the sparse understanding of the role of awareness in conjunction with other coordination mechanisms, and the lack of a technique with which to model people who are involved in certain communication patterns, but not assigned to technical tasks. To address these limitations, this dissertation describes a socio-technical congruence model to study socio-technical coordination. The model focuses on refining conceptualizations of technical and social relationships between people, on describing an improved gap technique for calculating socio-technical alignment, and on providing guidelines on how to study coordination in teams using the socio-technical congruence model. I first develop the model theoretically from related work. I then conduct two empirical investigations to address limitations of the model. The first study examines awareness in a small global team using observational studies. The second study examines important communicators and people who emerge in coordination} despite having no technical relationships by examining email archives from the same team. I conduct a third empirical investigation of a large global team to apply the model to study the relationship between socio-technical congruence and team performance using the project's repository. Finally, I revisit the model and improve it based on the empirical findings. The model refines conceptualizations of relationships, classifies emergent people who are suddenly involved with a task or a team during the project, and represents multi-variable relationships. It includes a template and an accompanying process for applying socio-technical congruence to study socio-technical coordination. This model enables researchers to study socio-technical coordination and analyze its effect on software engineering outcomes such as performance and quality. / Graduate