Understanding the Elusive Black Box of Artifact Mutability

Statements on artifact mutability are considered a core component of design theories, but the understanding of this phenomenon is fragmented and limited. To mitigate this issue, we build a framework of artifact mutability that is structured into six generic dimensions: paradigmatic perspective, intentionality, drivers, scope, temporality, and artifact layers. We review existing design theories in the light of these dimensions. With this paper, we show that our current knowledge about artifact mutability is still disconnected and mostly linked to specific artifact types. We are also able to characterize artifact mutability as a multi-facetted topic that has found little attention in existing articles that propose design theories. From a theoretical perspective, we advance the understanding of this phenomenon. From a practical perspective, the framework is expected to help tackling mutability in the design and adaptation of IT artifacts.