A social representations analysis of design science research

Design science research (DSR) is a relatively unfamiliar research paradigm within the computing field in South Africa. In light of recent interest in this paradigm, this study sought to explore DSR perspectives among local computing researchers. Key theoretical concepts from social representations theory (SRT) such as anchoring and objectification were used to explore how researchers construct their understanding of DSR. A visual approach was used to administer drawing and association tasks to two focus groups; each focus group comprised around 25 participants ranging from doctoral students to experienced researchers. The focus group discussions invoked interesting complementary and distinctive associations about the process and content of DSR – anchored in dominant and conventional research practices. The results also illustrated several ways in which DSR is objectified by the researchers in drawings and metaphorical constructions. We conclude that SRT is useful for exploring beliefs about novel and relatively unfamiliar research practices. This study contributes to an enhanced understanding of how computing researchers go about making sense and assigning meaning to changing research practices. The findings are developed into recommendations for introducing changes to research practices. These recommendations can be used to direct efforts to more appropriately accommodate changing research practices within the computing community to broaden knowledge generation.

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Increasing Learner Interaction in Large-Scale Lectures by Using a Mobile Learning Application

Blended Learning ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-0783-3.ch070 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 1453-1471

Author(s):

Katja Lehmann ◽

Matthias Söllner ◽

Jan Marco Leimeister

Keyword(s):

Focus Group ◽

Mobile Learning ◽

Large Scale ◽

Design Science ◽

Science Research ◽

Design Science Research ◽

University Teaching ◽

Research Approach ◽

Learning Success ◽

Learning Scenarios

Universities face increasing numbers of students leading to increasingly large lectures, and decreasing interaction and feedback, which are important factors for individual learning success and satisfaction. The use of IT can help in overcoming this challenge by increasing the interaction in large-scale lectures without massively increasing the workload of lecturers. This paper presents the design, use and evaluation of a mobile-learning application aiming to increase the interaction in large-scale lectures and the success of learners. For designing the application, the authors follow a design science research approach. The authors rely on insights from interaction theory as well as requirements gathered from lecturers and students in a focus group workshop. With the implementation, large-scale lecture related limitations can be overcome and the results help lecturers to face the according challenges. The results emphasize the potential of IT for university teaching and provide transferable insights for practical use in other learning scenarios.

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A Model for Improving Knowledge Generation in Design Science Research through Reflective Practice

The Electronic Journal of Business Research Methods ◽

10.34190/jbrm.17.4.001 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 17 (4) ◽

Author(s):

J.T. Janse van Rensburg ◽

Roelien Goede

Keyword(s):

Reflective Practice ◽

Explicit Knowledge ◽

Design Science ◽

Science Research ◽

Design Science Research ◽

Dual Process ◽

Knowledge Generation ◽

Implicit Assumption ◽

New Knowledge ◽

The Creation

Epistemology refers to the philosophy of knowledge and aims to address central questions of how we create new knowledge. All research paradigms can be distinguished in terms of epistemological assumptions, that is, assumptions of how knowledge is produced in the respective paradigms. Design science research (DSR) is a research paradigm often used in technical disciplines for the creation of artefacts. DSR has roots in pragmatism, where beliefs and theories are evaluated based on the success of its practical application. New knowledge is produced in DSR when original artefacts are created to solve a problem. The epistemological assumption of DSR can then shortly be defined as ‘knowledge through making’. At its core, DSR is goal‑orientated and its practical approaches are focused on delivering the product according to straight‑forward processes ‑ without being affected by human factors. This process of acquiring new knowledge is efficient but not necessarily effective in terms of capturing all aspects of the experience of the practitioner. Frameworks exist for the creation of artefacts in DSR, but the process of knowledge generation is not explicit. The aim of the paper is to guide explicit knowledge generation in DSR. The research question is “How can we make the process of obtaining knowledge in DSR more explicit?” DSR Frameworks are iterative in nature and focus on the creation and evaluation of artefacts. There is an implicit assumption that reflection takes place in these iterations. Schön, author of The Reflective Practitioner, writes that new knowledge is produced through reflection during and after an event has occurred. He also states that you can only have a complete understanding of a problem through the dual process of reflection‑in‑action and reflection‑on‑action. We argue that this also holds true for artefact design and development in DSR. A reflective DSR practitioner can explicitly indicate how knowledge is produced in the design science research cycle. The effective use of reflective practice changes each individual phase of a DSR framework from goal‑orientated to problem‑orientated. Epistemologically, knowledge is then produced through ‘learning by doing’, which gives DSR a worldview that supports reflective practice. The paper promotes the incorporation of reflective practice in DSR and provides a demonstration thereof in an example on the preparation of IT students for their chosen career.

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Gestão do sucesso de um projeto de sistemas de informação realizado no setor público research-in-progress

10.5753/eri-mt.2019.8595 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Nilton Takagi ◽

João Varajão ◽

Thiago Ventura ◽

Daniel Vecchiato ◽

Raphael Gomes

Keyword(s):

Focus Group ◽

Design Science ◽

Science Research ◽

Design Science Research ◽

Iron Triangle

Apesar da evolução verificada nos últimos anos no que respeita a metodologias e ferramentas da gestão de projetos, alcançar o sucesso é ainda um desafio para os gestores. Neste contexto, foi iniciada a experimentação de um modelo que incorpora atividades que possibilitam caracterizar e gerir o sucesso ao longo de um projeto. Essa experimentação está a decorrer no âmbito de um projeto de sistemas de informação realizado no setor público. As atividades realizadas, contemplando a identificação de critérios e fatores de sucesso, envolveram dinâmicas de focus group com a utilização do Success Canvas®. Para a pesquisa foi adotado um processo de Design Science Research, o qual se encontra na fase de avaliação do modelo. Os resultados preliminares mostram que os conceitos de sucesso são diferentes para cada stakeholder, que os critérios do Iron Triangle estão entre os mais citados, e que a gestão de stakeholders é um dos fatores de sucesso mais referido.

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