Principles for Information Systems Development
Project Description
Design principles are an important vehicle to convey design knowledge that contributes beyond instantiations applicable in a limited use context. Design principles are often formulated as the outcome of design science research and can be applied to guide information systems (IS) design in practice. While the idea of using design principles in design practice is not new, the term is not used consistently and is often substituted by other terms that refer to the same or similar ideas - design guidelines, design rules, or design norms, to name a few.
While the IS literature is rife with frameworks that describe the constitutive components of design theories, this is not the case for design principles. Despite their palpable relevance there is a lack of convention as to how design principles should be formulated, and what formulations are effective. It seems to be taken for granted that design principles are design principles if introduced as such.
Through our research, we address the lack of convention about how design principles should be formulated, and we seek to provide an effective formulation of design principles. The outcomes of this study are expected to be of high relevance to scholars in design science research as well as to professionals in the practice of information systems development.
While the IS literature is rife with frameworks that describe the constitutive components of design theories, this is not the case for design principles. Despite their palpable relevance there is a lack of convention as to how design principles should be formulated, and what formulations are effective. It seems to be taken for granted that design principles are design principles if introduced as such.
Through our research, we address the lack of convention about how design principles should be formulated, and we seek to provide an effective formulation of design principles. The outcomes of this study are expected to be of high relevance to scholars in design science research as well as to professionals in the practice of information systems development.
Relevance to Liechtenstein
Information systems have been the most important contributor to economic growth over the past decades. Prescriptive knowledge about the design of information systems is of high relevance to any organization that develops and implements information systems. Liechtenstein companies will thus benefit from the university's expertise on how such knowledge can be effectively formulated and communicated in terms of design principles.
