Working life studies and practice-based studies have a common interest for work, and how work
is accomplished in situated working conditions. The turn to practice may contribute to renew the
study of work. The main concern of a practice-based approach to working practices is to understand
the logic of the situation and the performance of action as practical knowledge, which connects
working with organizing and knowing with practicing. The article will first illustrate the basic
assumptions of an approach to working practices based on a post-humanist practice theory and
second it will focus on a specific contribution from it. I shall argue that a practice approach to innovation
as a continuous process contributes to a better understanding of how working practices
change or persist. In fact, the study of work in situation is not only descriptive in its purpose, but
it is also intended to yield practical outcomes for empowering practitioners in their attachment
to practicing.
Author Biography
Silvia Gherardi, University of Trento, Aalto University
