Quo Vadis, Design Science? - A Survey of Literature

Design science (DS) is increasingly a popular approach for research with a problem-solving perspective The literature on DS has exploded in the past few years creating a lively discussion emphasizing the balance between rigor and relevance in research, particularly within the information systems field However, there is still inconsistency with regards to the terminology, the underlying philosophy and the strategy to follow when doing DS The field(s) into which DS can contribute or in which it can be placed is also an open issue The advent of special issues, tracks and conferences on the subject is a sign of this and perhaps a suggestion that it constitutes a field on its own This paper reports a survey on the most influential literature on DS and provides an analysis of it in order to facilitate the discussion, clarify the terminology and contribute to making DS more actionable for researchers.

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