Actor-centred emergency response systems : a framework for needs analysis and information systems development

A new trend in emergency response systems (ERS) is to create new forms of collaboration, for example, by involving new resources in response operations, in order to compensate for the limited number of professional resources. However, the fact that the new resources may come from different organisational contexts and social sectors creates new challenges which directly affect information systems development for these resources. This study presents a framework including 15 dimensions to analyse the new forms of collaboration. Socio-technical system theory and participatory design approaches are applied to make the framework applicable in the information systems field. The framework might also address general problems such as the lack of formalisation and difficulties in identifying relevant stakeholders in participatory design. A comparison with international research showed a potential to adapt the framework to ERSs in other countries or even to other parts of the public sector that are undergoing similar changes