The concept of ‘the field’ is significant in ethnographic research as well as qualitativ research methods more generally. However, how a field researcher enters the field is usually taken for granted after gaining access to the field. We suggest that entrance is a distinct phase of fieldwork that differs from negotiating access. Entrance is not a trivial event; rather, it is a rite of passage i...

While researchers go to great lengths to justify and prove theoretical links between constructs, the relationship between measurement items and constructs is often ignored. By default, the relationship between construct and item is assumed to be reflective, meaning that the measurement items Carol Saunders was the accepting senior editor for this paper. Traci Carte was the associate editor. Ron...

Few would refute the view that information systems have and will continue to make significant impacts on our societies. There is almost no area of human endeavor that has been untouched by information technology-based information systems. In some areas, IS has had a positive effect (finding survivors after natural disasters such as the Tsunami), while in others, the misuse of IS has aided in aw...

The study aims to develop an overview of information systems (IS) research in China in recent years and to identify the similarities and the differences between North American and Chinese IS research from four perspectives: reference discipline, research topics, research methods, and unit/level of analysis. A total of 604 research papers published in 18 leading Chinese academic journals from 19...

Over the past decade, there has been increasing interest in the use of grounded theory in information systems research. Grounded theory is a qualitative research method that seeks to develop theory that is grounded in data systematically gathered and analysed. The purpose of this paper is to suggest guidelines for grounded theory studies in information systems. Our guidelines are based on a fra...

Article history: Received 8 November 2010 Received in revised form 21 November 2010 Accepted 21 November 2010 Available online 17 December 2010 Information Systems (IS) publications that use interviews for data generation tend to provide very little insight into the research process andvery few rely on a carefully chosenandwell-articulated interviewing method. Given the wide variety of intervie...

The information systems (IS) research community continues to raise questions about the characteristics and role of theory in IS. Some suggest the preeminence and misplaced emphasis on theory distorts and limits IS research, while others suggest the manner in which theory is borrowed and adapted impedes creative and innovative theorizing. This essay describes an established mode of theorizing th...

The linguistic turn within philosophy has recently gained increased attention within social sciences. It can be seen as an attempt to investigate traditional philosophical problems by analysing the linguistic expressions used for these investigations. More generally, the phenomenon of language itself must be considered because of its (constitutional) impact on the investigation of phenomena in ...

In the past decade, the study of emotions in information systems research has gained prominence and has allowed the field itself to expand its horizon while delving into other disciplines. The idea behind decoding the human behavior promotes the need to understand the complex nature of human emotions and makes it especially relevant as an element for information systems research. In addition, t...

Previous research in the area of information systems (IS), stress, and behavior has emphasized either stress resulting from an inability to cope with information and communication technologies or the potential value of IS to reduce stress in certain situations. In this paper, we merge both approaches: we propose that there is a duality in the effect of IS on stress perceptions, particularly, th...