The 2021 impact factor for ISJ was 7.767, for 2022 it was 6.4. These are some of the highest impact factors of any IS Journals. See past ISJ impact factors and the Editor’s comment on impact factors here. The next impact factor (2023) will not be available until around mid June 2024.

Abstract

In this study, we examine the reflexivity modes of information systems (IS) professionals and integrate the IS context—including structural, technological, and social properties—with IS professionals’ biographical, inner dialogues to theorise about the role of reflexivity modes in their experiences of psychological empowerment. Through the lens of Archer’s (2007) three-stage model of reflexivity and different modes of reflexivity (communicative, autonomous, meta, and fractured), we investigate the experiences of psychological empowerment and project dynamics among IS professionals in IS development work by zooming in on 6?years of three IS professionals’ work lives. Our findings make several contributions to theory and practice. First, we elucidate the interplay between reflexivity and psychological empowerment. Second, we show how different IS professionals’ approach similar structural, technological, or social circumstances differently (such as agile work practices), depending on their reflexive inner dialogues. This includes showing how different reflexivity modes, focused on various properties of the IS context (structural, technological, and social), becomes entangled with interpersonal dynamics and IS project dynamics.

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Information Systems Journal, EarlyView. Source

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) platforms face distinct orchestration challenges in industry-specific settings, such as the need for specialised resources, data-sharing concerns, heterogeneous users and context-sensitive applications. This study investigates how these platforms can effectively orchestrate autonomous actors in developing and consuming AI applications despite these challenges. Through an analysis of five AI platforms for medical imaging, we identify four orchestration logics: platform resourcing, data-centric collaboration, distributed refinement and application brokering. These logics illustrate how platform owners can verticalize the AI development process by orchestrating actors who co-create, share and refine data and AI models, ultimately producing industry-specific applications capable of generalisation. Our findings extend research on platform orchestration logics and change our perspective from boundary resources to a process of boundary processing. These insights provide a theoretical foundation and practical strategies to build effective industry-specific AI platforms.

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Information Systems Journal, EarlyView. Source

Abstract

Reliability, which is concerned with whether something performs as it should, is well-accepted as an important part of any scientific research, with recognised methods for assessing it in the natural sciences. Reliability is a prerequisite for validity, which assesses knowledge production. Design science research is unique in that it produces an artefact and makes contributions to a design knowledge base and is tasked with the duality of design and science. Therefore, reliability should be reconsidered to address the assumptions underlying this type of information systems research.

This paper proposes a Design Science Reliability Framework. The framework identifies the part of design science research that should be evaluated (artefact, methods, measures and design knowledge). It also considers when reliability should be assessed as a project progresses by differentiating synchronic versus diachronic evaluation. The framework is used to derive a set of techniques for establishing reliability that can be applied during the evaluation process to both a project’s knowledge production and its artefacts. Application of the framework should assist design science researchers when considering how to assess their results.

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Abstract

Westernised paradigms dominate the information systems (IS) field, often overshadowing alternative epistemologies. This study challenges the prevailing hegemonic view and contributes to the decolonization of IS research and practice by proposing a Latin American and decolonial approach to technological development that emphasises community centrality and epistemic justice through recognition of local knowledges and Indigenous traditions. Using design ethnography, we follow the development of a solidarity cryptocurrency in a Brazilian favela. Our paper offers two key contributions. By introducing tecnologia social, an underrepresented perspective in IS, we highlight ecology of knowledges, centrality of the local and decolonial reconfiguration as principles that can enrich the understanding of IS projects from a decolonial perspective. In addition, we propose a new concept—epistemic dialogical tension—as a process wherein different epistemologies coexist and accommodate each other, encouraging a dynamic interplay of distinct human experiences and worldviews. It offers new paths to IS scholars and practitioners in navigating the complexities of epistemic plurality. We argue that tecnologia social and epistemic dialogical tension provide fertile ground for developing reimagined, decolonized approaches where multiple epistemologies can coexist, favouring the often-silenced communities they are intended to benefit.

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Abstract

A growing amount of information systems (IS) research is examining the use of social media to enable effective crisis response. However, existing studies have overlooked the impact of indigenous concepts, which play an important role in crisis response. Our study intends to offer an indigenous perspective to this research stream by examining how social media-enabled crisis response is enacted in Vietnam. We used COVID-19 as the focal crisis and collected a rich set of discussion threads from social media. By analysing the data through the grounded theory method, our study identifies the indigenous theoretical concept of t??ng thân t??ng ái. We further unveil a process model consisting of six mechanisms through which t??ng thân t??ng ái inspires crisis response on social media and three roles assumed by social media during this process. Our study contributes to the literature on social media-enabled crisis response by providing an indigenous perspective and a context-specific explanation. It also enriches IS theory in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) by investigating how the indigenous concept of t??ng thân t??ng ái influences Vietnam’s crisis response on social media. Our findings also provide guidelines that can help communities beyond Vietnam to promote the values of t??ng thân t??ng ái during crisis response.

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Abstract

While there is a growing interest in applying decolonial approaches within the field of information systems (IS), effective avenues for engagement remain largely unexplored. To this end, our paper introduces a framework focused on decolonial IS research informed by the notions of the pluriverse and conviviality. These concepts emphasise a focus on ontological, epistemological and methodological dimensions, with a strong orientation to justice. We illustrate the application of the framework through a re-analysis of our own research project, the co-production of the Metropolitan Water Observatory (MWO) in Lima, Peru. Applying the framework to learn new insights about the MWO, this paper contributes to the IS field by providing a framework from which to examine IS interventions from a decolonial perspective. In addition to advancing theoretical understanding, our framework serves as a valuable resource for scholars navigating the complex landscape of decolonial approaches in IS.

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Abstract

The “critical turn” in information and communication technologies for development (ICT4D) research emphasises a transformative and ethical research practice which can be addressed by developing the critical intent and agency of ICT4D researchers through reflexive practice. There exist, however, limited methodological insights into existing reflexive approaches and a limited understanding of how self-transformation and change can take place through more critically reflexive ICT4D research practice. To address these issues, this paper proposes a reflexive methodology for ICT4D research, labelled “the 4Rs”, which comprises four interrelated reflective and potentially self-transforming processes of Retrospection, Representation, Review and Reinterpretation. We present the explanations and justifications of the methodology in detail with illustrative examples. We also employ a metacognitive process to understand how self-transformation can be realised through the use of this methodology and demonstrate the applicability of the 4Rs for other ICT4D researchers. Our main contribution lies in illustrating how this collective and critical approach can be used to deepen the self-reflexivity of traditional individual confessional accounts. We also demonstrate how the approach can lead to new collective knowledge and contribute to achieving more critical agency.

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Abstract

Deployment of digital crowdfunding platforms, which predominantly are designed in line with Western norms, into Indigenous communities often leads to significant cultural tensions. This study uses the Kenyan Indigenous tradition of Harambee to elucidate how these cultural tensions manifest and are navigated in the context of digital crowdfunding. The study employs a qualitative approach, conducting narrative interviews with individuals experienced in both Harambee and digital crowdfunding within the Kenyan context, to advance our understanding of decolonial digital crowdfunding. The findings reveal significant cultural tensions, including those related to inclusive access, diminished communal engagement and erosion of social capital. These tensions highlight the marginalisation of Indigenous cultures and the reinforcement of colonial tendencies in digital spaces. Additionally, the study uncovers the ingenuity of Indigenous users who are integrating Indigenous knowledge and Harambee norms with digital technologies, to balance cultural sensitivity, strengthen technological inclusivity and preserve their communal values within decolonial digital fundraising. This study advances decolonial scholarship by demonstrating how the integration of both Indigenous and local practices with digital technology not only advances digital decoloniality but also enriches the technology’s cultural responsiveness. The findings have practical implications for designing inclusive digital crowdfunding platforms that acknowledge and align with local cultural norms.

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