Bios: my human living
βίος — bios — human living; livelihood; the physical human life
Alvesson and Sandberg 2011: Generating Research Questions Through Problematization
Alvesson, M. & Sandberg, J., 2011. Generating Research Questions Through Problematization. Academy of Management Review, 36(2), pp.247-271. Rationale: There has been much concern about the staleness of management research, with apparently little radically new theories being produced. Thus, the Academy of Management Review called for papers for a special forum on theory development. This is one of the accepted papers for this special section in volume 36, issue 2. Objectives: This study contends that much of the staleness in management...
read moreUrquhart et al 2010: Putting the “theory” back into grounded theory: guidelines for grounded theory studies in information systems
Urquhart, C., Lehmann, H. & Myers, M.D., 2010. Putting the “theory” back into grounded theory: guidelines for grounded theory studies in information systems. Information Systems Journal, 20(4), pp.357–381. Rationale and objectives: Grounded theory is on the rise in information systems research. However, much such research uses techniques from grounded theory without a strong focus on actual theory development. This article attempts to refocus on the theory development aspect of grounded theory. Although it is...
read moreWeber 2012: Evaluating and Developing Theories in the Information Systems Discipline
Weber, Ron 2012. “Evaluating and Developing Theories in the Information Systems Discipline,” Journal of the Association for Information Systems (13:1), pp. 2-30. Rationale: There is much interest in theory building, yet detailed guides on how to do this are still lacking in clarity. Objectives: Weber uses a formal ontological framework to define the elements of a theory, and thus expound in detail the elements of high-quality theory. He illustrates his evaluatory techniques by evaluating Griffith et al (2003) in detail....
read moreLee 2007: Crafting a Paper for Publication
Lee, Allen S. (2007) "Crafting a Paper for Publication," Communications of the Association for Information Systems: Vol. 20, Article 7. Available at: http://aisel.aisnet.org/cais/vol20/iss1/7 Rationale: This paper gives practical tips on how to craft ("to make or produce with care, skill, or ingenuity", p. 34, quoted from Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary 2006) a paper for publication in a leading research journal. Lee compiles the tips from his own experience as a senior scholar in IS and from various tips...
read moreHirschheim 2008: Some Guidelines for the Critical Reviewing of Conceptual Papers
Hirschheim, Rudy (2008) "Some Guidelines for the Critical Reviewing of Conceptual Papers," Journal of the Association for Information Systems: Vol. 9: Iss. 8, Article 21. Available at: http://aisel.aisnet.org/jais/vol9/iss8/21 Rationale: This editorial commentary was written by Rudy Hirschheim two years after becoming the senior editor of the IS Research Perspectives section of the Journal of the Association for Information Systems. He addresses reviewers with the purpose of guiding them in reviewing conceptual articles, which is...
read moreTsang & Kwan 1999: Replication and Theory Development in Organizational Science: A Critical Realist Perspective
Tsang, E.W.K. & Kwan, K.-M., 1999. Replication and Theory Development in Organizational Science: A Critical Realist Perspective. The Academy of Management Review, 24(4), pp.759-780. I read this as a critical realist piece in management. In addition, its treatment of replication in managemetn and organizational sciences (including qualitative research) is pertinent to my study of systematic literature reviews. Rationale: Replication is an important aspect of developing scientific knowledge. However, in the social sciences, particularly in...
read moreWhetten 1989: What constitutes a theoretical contribution?
Summary of Whetten, D.A., 1989. What constitutes a theoretical contribution? Academy of Management Review, 14(4), p.490–495.
read moreGranados et al 2010: Information Transparency in Business-to-Consumer Markets: Concepts, Framework, and Research Agenda
Granados, Nelson, Alok Gupta and Robert J. Kauffman (2010). Research Commentary—Information Transparency in Business-to-Consumer Markets: Concepts, Framework, and Research Agenda. Information Systems Research (21:2), June 2010, pp. 207-226. I read this as a literature review in ISR. Rationale: In the past decade (2000 to 2010), there has been an increasing trend for companies to make more internal information about themselves and their products and services available for customers to see. The industry-changing nature of the Internet has...
read moreNevo and Wade 2010: The Formation and Value of IT-Enabled Resources: Antecedents and Consequences of Synergistic Relationships
Nevo, Saggi & Wade, Michael R., 2010. The Formation and Value of IT-Enabled Resources: Antecedents and Consequences of Synergistic Relationships. MIS Quarterly, 34(1), pp.163-183. I read this as an exemplar literature review paper; however, it is not a review paper; it is a theory development paper. It was well-worth my time, though. Rationale: It has been challenging to empirically demonstrate the firm-level impact of IT assets, which has led some to conclude that IT assets in themselves have no strategic value. The authors believe that...
read moreChen et al 2010: Information Systems Strategy: Reconceptualization, Measurement, and Implications
Chen, Daniel; Mocker, Martin; Preston, David S.; and Teubner, Alexander. 2010. "Information Systems Strategy: Reconceptualization, Measurement, and Implications," MIS Quarterly, (34: 2) pp.233-259. This is a systematic literature review that generates a new conceptualization of information systems strategy. Rationale: The term "information systems strategy" (IS strategy or ISS), not to be confused with "IT strategy", is often used, but not clearly defined or conceptualized in the research literature. It is...
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