2.2 Research culture
IS has demonstrated both rigorous scientific evaluation and the split
between positivist and phenomenological perspectives. In fact, “the
essence of Information Systems as design science, for example, lies in
the scientific evaluation of artifacts” (Iivari, 2005) in (Chatterjee
& Hevner, 2010) (Hevner & Chatterjee, 2010). According to Smith
(1998), positivists attitudes toward sociology are of the view that
objective or hard facts and the relationship between these facts are
foundational to scientific facts. For positivists, such laws have the
status of truth and social objects that can be studied in much the same
way as natural objects.’ These hard facts are the objective
(quantitative) and the technical aspects of IS that are logically
established and programmed into systems with defined functionalities or
outputs and excludes any priori speculations. For example, embedded
business rules, primary keys, and other information systems
functionalities that are not subjected to broad discourse and varying
outputs. On the contrary, phenomenology is generally qualitative and
subjective, more abstract and draws on divergence and exploratory.
Again, in IS non-technical and managerial decision-making based on the
outputs from sets of computerised set of systems and procedures. For
example, digital transformation, IS Strategy and other management
related issues.