Research-in-progress: economic elements of collective memory in it occupational culture

With a backdrop of economic turmoil in recent history composed of a severe recession and slow recovery, there is timely motivation to explain the important role that collective memory plays in occupational culture. Based on the lens of cultural sociology and Halbwach's theory of collective memory, the findings uncover the heroes and origin stories that form the collective memory of the IT occupation in order to answer the research question "What are the important elements of collective memory in IT occupational culture?" The findings include elements of economic downturns, layoffs, outsourcing, job-hopping, 9/11, Silicon Valley, and increased regulation, as well as common heroes and origins. A hermeneutic interpretation is offered to further explain the importance of the results for both theory and practice.