Patronizing Technology: An Emergent Technophilic Behavior

Abstract

Patrons are widely recognized to be instrumental in the nourishment of creative endeavors like art, music, etc. But the role of a patron and the phenomenon of patronage have never been explored in the context of technology. Some of the individuals enthusiastic about technology demonstrate interest in supporting technology research and development through donations, crowdfunding, etc. It should, therefore, be of significant interest for researchers of human-technology interactions to study these behaviors using the concept of a patron. Hence, with this paper, we aim to introduce technology patron and patronage to IS research. We begin with a review and classification of existing roles studied in recent IS literature to uncover a gap in focus on technology support category, wherein we eventually define the scope of a patron. We conclude with process maps, a conceptual framework, and some research questions on technology patronage, to establish a foundation for future research.