Design Science Research: A call for a pragmatic perspective

Information systems design has long been concerned with improving utility, efficiency and effectiveness - a markedly rational functionalist perspective. Applying a broader view of design paradigms reveals that information systems have a generative capacity, which enables reframing and recasting reality to enable human action based and support multiple values. Viewing Design Science Research through the lens of pragmatist philosophy reveals that broadening the ontological foundations for design theory and evaluation can increase our understanding of how people actually interact with technology to achieve ideographic goals. The secondary design of information technologies and community-based Geographic Information Systems are offered as examples for which demonstrates a pragmatic perspective enriches design directives

MOVING BEYOND IS IDENTITY: CONCEPTS AND DISCOURSES

The ongoing debate about the identity of the Information Systems (IS) discipline is examined from a new perspective. Two recent studies are contrasted to demonstrate the limits of retrospective analysis for defining the field of IS. A new model for IS research, based on concepts and discourses is suggested. Latent Semantic Analysis is proposed as an approach to identifying concepts which form transdisciplinary discourses. Conceptual mapping across disciplines may elucidate fruitful areas of research and a transdisciplinary approach to research may improve research salience and intellectual contributions. Such an approach may also weaken or dissolve the discipline as an applied business/organizational field focused on the information technology artifact. This has the long term effect of maintaining intellectual plasticity and relevance, while expanding the range of intellectual contributions available to IS researchers. Moving beyond IS identity will require rethinking institutional structures upon which the identity of IS is currently dependent

Secondary Design: A Case of Community Participation

Online communities often rely on the loyalty and time of community members to donate energy and expertise in processes ofsecondary design. The focus of this paper is regarding a breakdown in the processes of secondary design at such an onlinecommunity. We follow a case of change at an established online community, Digg.com. Changes in technology componentsby Digg administration and the effects this has had on the Digg community members affected how members contributed toprocesses of secondary design. This case warrants investigation as organizations are increasingly attempting to leverageonline communities in the design and development of systems. The case contributes to theorizing about secondary design andcommunities of practice

CAUSALITY: THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM IN INFORMATION SYSTEMS EPISTEMOLOGY

Causal reasoning is central to scientific practice and to everyday life, yet has received scant attention in Information Systems epistemology. This essay identifies six types of causal analysis that can be used in IS research: regularity, counterfactual, probabilistic, manipulation, substantival (mental), and enabling condition analysis. A framework is developed for application of the different types of analysis in terms of two dimensions; planned versus emergent systems and prescriptive versus descriptive modes of research. It is shown how the different types of analysis can be used in each cell of the framework. The identification of the substantival and enabling condition types of analysis for Information Systems research is novel. Further work is indicated, particularly with respect to probabilistically necessary and sufficient conditions, qualitative evaluation of causal chains, and the plausibility of claims for causality with some statistical methods in common use

Modes of Theory Integration

IS, among other social sciences, have moved from a relative paucity of theories about social phenomenon to a a state of multiple, overlapping, and overly narrow theories. We offer three Modes for theory Integration that will enable researchers to better integrate theories and processes into internally coherent models within theories, across theories and between fields. The basis for integration are semantic similarity, nomological congruence and physical/functional/causal overlap. We develop a framework that will justify propositions for theory integration that can subsequently be tested for correspondence to real world phenomenon